Federal Programs Conference Imagine the possibilities

Formerly the Title I Conference, the Federal Programs Department and the Title III/Migrant Education Department have partnered with the Special Education Department to provide a well-rounded training opportunity for all aspects of federal programs in schools and districts.

Asante is the author of four books, including Buck: A Memoir, which was praised by Maya Angelou as “A story of surviving and thriving with passion, compassion, wit, and style.” Buck made the Washington Post best-seller list in 2014 and 2015 and is a NAACP Image Award finalist. Asante is a prize-winning filmmaker and a Sundance™ Screenwriting Fellow for the movie adaptation of Buck.

Asante studied at the University of London, earned a B.A. from Lafayette College, and an M.F.A. from the UCLA School of Theater, Film, and Television.
Asante has given distinguished lectures at Harvard, Yale, Stanford, as well as hundreds of other universities. He has toured in over 40 countries and was awarded the Key to the City of Dallas, Texas.

Called “the voice of a new generation” by Essence magazine, he has been featured on the CBS Early Show, VH1, NPR, The Breakfast Club, and MTV. His inspirational story “The Blank Page” is featured in the #1 New York Times best-seller, Chicken Soup for the Soul: 20th Anniversary Edition. Asante’s essays have been published in USA Today, Huffington Post, San Francisco Chronicle, and the New York Times.

Described by Vibe magazine as “brilliantly complex,” Asante is a Hip Hop artist who has performed globally and collaborated with King Mez, 9th Wonder, Talib Kweli, and others.
Asante is a Distinguished Professor-in-Residence at the MICA School of Ideas in India and a tenured professor of creative writing and film at Morgan State University.

Dr. Luis Cruz

Luis F. Cruz, PhD, is former principal of Baldwin Park High School, located east of Los Angeles, California. He has been a teacher and administrator at the elementary, middle, and high school levels. Dr. Cruz presents on methods from the best-selling book Transforming School Culture by Anthony Muhammad.

In 2007, Dr. Cruz led a collective effort to secure a $250,000 grant for Baldwin Park from the California Academic Partnership Program for the purpose of effectively utilizing “courageous leadership” to promote a more equitable and effective organization.

Since becoming a public school educator, Dr. Cruz has won the New Teacher of the Year, Teacher of the Year, Administrator of the Year, and other community leadership awards. He and a committee of teacher leaders at Baldwin Park received California's prestigious Golden Bell Award from the California School Boards Association for significantly closing the achievement gap between the general student population and students learning English as a second language.

As a recipient of the Hispanic Border Leadership Institute's fellowship for doctoral studies, he earned a doctorate in institutional leadership and policy studies from the University of California Riverside. He earned an associate's degree from Mount San Antonio Community College, a bachelor's degree from California State University, Fullerton, and a master's degree from Claremont Graduate University.

Dr. Diane Staehr Fenner

Diane Staehr Fenner, Ph.D. is the president of SupportEd, LLC (http://www.GetSupportEd.net), a woman owned small business based in the Washington, DC area that provides educators of English learners (ELs) the skills and resources they need to champion ELs’ success within and beyond students’ classrooms. At SupportEd, Diane serves as project lead for all the team’s work providing EL professional development, programmatic support, and research to school districts, states, organizations, and the U.S. Department of Education.

Diane is an author of four books, a blogger for the Colorín Colorado website, and a frequent keynote presenter on EL education at conferences across North America. Prior to forming SupportEd, Diane was a research associate at George Washington University’s Center for Excellence and Equity in Education and spent a decade as an ESOL teacher, dual language assessment teacher, and ESOL assessment specialist in Fairfax County Public Schools, VA. She also taught English in Veracruz, Mexico and Berlin, Germany. Diane earned her Ph.D. in Multilingual/Multicultural Education with an emphasis in Literacy at George Mason University.

She lives in Fairfax, VA with her husband, three elementary age kids who are in a Spanish immersion program in their public school, a dog, a few fish, and an elderly hamster. Diane speaks fluent Spanish and German, grew up on a dairy farm in Central New York State, and is a first-generation college graduate. You can connect with her via email at Diane@GetSupportEd.net or on Twitter at @DStaehrFenner.

Charlotte Danielson

Charlotte Danielson, a former economist, is an internationally-recognized expert in the area of teacher effectiveness, specializing in the design of teacher evaluation systems that, while ensuring teacher quality, also promote professional learning. She advises State Education Departments and National Ministries and Departments of Education, both in the United States and overseas. She is in demand as a keynote speaker at national and international conferences, and as a policy consultant to legislatures and administrative bodies.

Ms. Danielson is a graduate of Cornell University (history), Oxford University (philosophy, politics, and economics) and Rutgers University (educational administration and supervision.) She has taught at all levels, kindergarten through university), and has worked as a curriculum director and staff development director, and is the founder of The Danielson Group. Her Framework for Teaching has become the most widely-used definition of teaching in the United States, and has been adopted as the single model, or one of several approved models, in over 20 states.

Ms. Danielson's many publications range from defining good teaching ("Enhancing Professional Practice: a framework for teaching," 2007), to organizing schools for student success ("Enhancing Student Achievement: a framework for school improvement," 2002), to teacher leadership ("Teacher Leadership that Strengthens the Profession," 2006), to professional conversations ("Talk about Teaching! Conducting Professional Conversations," 2009), to numerous practical instruments and training programs (both onsite and online) to assist practitioners in implementing her ideas.

Professional development credit is now available!

To register and pay for professional development credit through Boise State University, please follow the link below. The registration and payment process is quick and easy to complete, but if you encounter any problems, please feel free to contact Extended Studies Customer Service for assistance at (208) 426-1709.

Credit Registration Deadline: April 27, 2017

Please keep in mind that professional development registrants are entitled to one free transcript per term (Spring, Summer, and Fall) in which credits are earned. You must submit a transcript request form to have yours sent. The transcript request form is available on the K-12 Professional Development website

If you have any questions, please contact the Extended Studies Customer Service at (208) 426-1709 or email ESTellUs@boisestate.edu.

Important: You will receive an emailed confirmation of your registration once complete. If you do not receive this, or would like to confirm your registration otherwise, please call (208) 426-1709.

To register and pay for professional development credit through Northwest Nazarene University, please follow the link below. The registration and payment process is quick and easy to complete, but if you encounter any problems, please feel free to contact (208) 467-8439 for assistance.

Credit Registration Deadline: April 10, 2017

Parking garages are located within walking distance of the Boise Centre, which is located in the Grove Plaza. For more information on parking rates, a map of garage locations, and hours of availability, review the Downtown Boise website.

If you are interested in alternate forms of transportation within the City of Boise, find information toward the bottom of the Downtown Boise webpage.

Session Description: During this fast-paced, highly interactive session, participants will engage with a variety of animated mathematical thinking models, which are built from triggered, interactive PowerPoint templates. Participants will learn how to design their own animated thinking models from the templates provided by the presenter and will learn how to effectively use them to promote mathematical discourse. Participants will also learn how to leverage mathematical thinking models to promote a classroom community in which thinking is valued, risks are supported, and questions are discovered. All participants will be given the interactive, triggered PowerPoint templates from the presentation as well as directions regarding how to use them so that the thinking models can immediately be used in their own classrooms.

Presenter Information: Steve Wyborney is the K-12 District Math Coach in the Ontario School District. He is well known for his use of instructional technology and his passion for mathematics. Steve is deeply committed to contributing to the learning of educators and students, both regionally and globally, through the power of professional development and social media. He is the author of 14 books, presents at numerous conferences, and was the 2005 Oregon Teacher of the Year.

Session Description: In this session participants will be introduced to various applications that can be used to support student accessibility in both the general education and the special education classroom. This workshop will include an interactive hands-on approach that allows educators to explore various ways these applications apply to their content.

Presenter Information: Michelle is entering into her 5th year in education. She studied at Boise State University and earned her Bachelor’s Degree in Elementary Education with a Literacy Endorsement in 2011. She has teaching and administration experience at the elementary level. During her time in the classroom, Michelle was able to successfully integrate technology alongside excellent pedagogy in her day-to-day instruction. She brings a unique perspective as a teacher who entered education during the early adoption of technology and her passion for innovative instruction is evident when she speaks on these classroom practices. Michelle works closely with local school districts to ensure effective and purposeful integration of technology into researched based instructional practices. She has a M.Ed. in Curriculum and Instruction and will be finishing her Ed.S. in Education Leadership this December.

Amy is beginning her 14th as a professional educator. She graduated from Northwest Nazarene University in 2001 with a Bachelor's Degree in Elementary Education. She taught 2nd and 5th grade, where she became skilled in building early literacy skills and higher level comprehension strategies with students. She is highly trained in Marzano’s 9 Instructional Strategies and Building Background Knowledge, Charlotte Danielson’s Framework of Instruction, and working in Professional Learning Communities. Amy has been highly involved with mentoring both inservice and preservice teachers with multiple universities. Using technology as a catalyst, Amy transformed her classroom from limited technology to a 1:1 environment, integrating effective instruction with blended and personalized learning. She has a thorough knowledge of the new Common Core Standards and how to motivate, coach, and mentor others in integrating innovative practices in the classroom. Amy recently completed her M.Ed. in Curriculum, Instruction and Innovation from Northwest Nazarene University and will be starting her Ed.S. in Education Leadership at NNU in Fall 2015.

Session Description: For five years, migrant preschool has been a success in the Minidoka School District. I would like to share with professionals successful academic practices within the classroom. The presentation will include videos of students working in groups, during carpet time, distant learning, using technology, following procedures, and doing many more academic activities.

Presenter Information: Maria Renz holds a BA in Communications from the Autonomous University in San Luis Potosi, Mexico and an Elementary Education Certificate from the State Department of Education. She started teaching Migrant Preschool in 2011 at the Minidoka Preschool Center. Her experience with preschool students and their families is one of a kind. These families are wholehearted, caring, and hard-working, whose only purpose is to give their children a better future, which is the motor that keeps her going when she teaches their students.

Session Description: Have you ever wished you had a training to support your staff that was already created and FREE? Well, you do!! In this session, new special education directors will learn where to find a plethora of information to support their special education teachers in improving outcomes for students with disabilities.

Conference Strand: Special Education (IDEA Part B)Suggested Audience: District Leadership

Presenter Information: Janice Carson is an Associate Director of Idaho SESTA and the Director of the Idaho Assistive Technology Project located at the University of Idaho’s Center on Disabilities and Human Development. Prior to her current position, she worked as a Coordinator in the Special Education Division at the Idaho State Department of Education. In her current appointment, she oversees and is engaged in activities required under the Assistive Technology Act as well as several other federal statutes. She also teachers in the University of Idaho’s Special Education graduate programs. In addition, Dr. Carson has presented on assistive technology and Universal Design for Learning at both a state and national level conferences.

Cathy Thornton is an Associate Director of Idaho Special Education Support and Technical Assistance (SESTA) located at Boise State University. Prior to her current work she was Director of Special Programs in West Ada School District. She has experience in overseeing preschool through high school special education programs. Currently her duties include supervision of the Instructional Coordinators that provide professional and technical assistance to special education professionals and managing resources to complete the scope of work for the project.

Session Description: Participants will explore prompting strategies for learners who exhibit challenging behavior in instructional settings, especially students who are on the Autism Spectrum. Prompting strategies, used thoughtfully, allow teachers to ensure that learners receive the right amount of information at just the right time to encourage correct responding.

Presenter Information: Andrea Cox is currently a Behavioral Coordinator for Idaho Special Education Support and Technical Assistance (Idaho SESTA). She has worked in both private and public educational settings with a variety of students across preschool and early elementary to transition aged students. She has specialized working effectively with students on the Autism Spectrum in school settings.

Session Description: When Juan moved to an Idaho district at 16 years old, he dropped out to go to work and help his family financially. At first he was proud to be earning money and helping out. Now, at 17, he is thinking he may have made a mistake. How do we find Juan and get him into the migrant program? How do we serve him and help him change the path he is on to one that includes education and a bright future? Come learn advanced tips to help you find, identify and serve OSY. In addition, we will be sharing exciting updates to the Idaho Migrant Education Program! Come hear about the Migrant Student Leadership Institute’s for sophomores and juniors and the electronic Certificate of Eligibility (eCOE). There are great things coming to the Idaho MEP!

Presenter Information: Aracely Cornejo began working for the Vallivue School District in the summer of 2008. She serves as the Migrant Identification and Recruitment Coordinator for Region 3 in eight school districts. She received her Associates degree in Social Studies, obtained her CDA Certification (Child Development Associate Home Visitor), and is currently pursuing a Bachelor of Arts in Elementary Education. She has over 12 years of experience working in K-12 education and has also held positions as an Employment & Training Counselor and a Career Specialist. What she enjoys most about her work is being able to “advocate for the rights and responsibilities of all students; specifically, addressing the needs of migrant students and families.”

Robert Gomez currently serves as a Regional Coordinator for Idaho. He has been working in the Migrant Program for 28 years. In 2013 Robert was selected as the Idaho Migrant Liaison of the year. In 2015 Robert was awarded the National NASDME Support Staff Award for his expertise in Identification and Recruitment and in ensuring access by all migrant students to quality services.

Sarah has taught English Learners and worked the migrant program for 18 years. She was a migrant summer school director 14 years and the migrant coordinator at Vallivue School District for 10 years. She has a passion for helping vulnerable students through services, supported by really good data. She came to the Department of Education as the migrant coordinator in 2015.

Session Description: Universal Design for Learning (UDL) is based in neuroscience that identifies three critical networks of the brain: strategic, affective, and recognition (Rose, 2001; Rose & Meyer, 2000). Three principles of UDL (i.e. multiple means of engagement, expression, and representation) emerged from the knowledge of these three brain networks and stem from the research stating that people differ in (a) how they process and understand information (i.e. recognition network), (b) how they organize and express thoughts and knowledge (i.e. strategic network), and (c) how they engage in learning and remain motivated (i.e. affective network) (Center on Applied Special Technology, n.d.). Traditional instructional strategies that do not align with UDL principles are based on the assumption that all students learn in the same way and should be assessed in the same way as well. This limited view on how we learn and process information has been creating obstacles for students to access information, to express their learning, and to engage in the learning process. This presentation will focus on the learner variability as well as the principles, guidelines, and checkpoints of UDL and make clear and practical connections to classroom instruction.

Presenter Information: Dr. Aleksandra Hollingshead is an assistant professor of special education at the University of Idaho in Moscow, ID. She was born and raised in Poland and moved to the United States in 2003. Upon earning a Master degree in special education, Dr. Hollingshead worked as a special education teacher with students with autism and severe behaviors. She earned her doctorate degree from the University of Cincinnati in 2013. Dr. Hollingshead’s research interests focus on engagement in learning. She examines engagement’s definition and strategies for supporting it, especially for students with autism and severe developmental disabilities.

Presenter Information: Heather Hepworth has had the opportunity to practice various leadership responsibilities in the education field. Her experiences as a first grade teacher provided leadership opportunities, which led her to pursue a master’s degree in educational leadership from the University of Idaho. Heather’s experiences living around the word have given her a global perspective about teaching and learning. She believes students must be taught in 21st Century environments in order to be successful out of school. She is currently the Director of School Improvement in the Minidoka County School District and enjoys working with students, teachers, and administrators.

Ashley Johnson has taught grades 4-6 for twelve years in Idaho schools. She received a Bachelor of Arts degree from Idaho State University and recently received a Master's in Instructional Leadership from University of Idaho. She has been a proponent for technology in education for many years resulting in key responsibilities and leadership for the 1:1 iPad deployment at Paul Elementary. She is currently the Director of Student Improvement at Minidoka County School District. She provides continuous training and technical support to fellow educators and continues to instill excitement for learning to the highly connected students throughout the district.

Session Description: In this session, a discussion will be held regarding a recent research project which implemented a special education teacher observation measure to rate the use of evidence-based practice within a special education teacher preparation program. Participants were teacher candidates enrolled in an undergraduate methods course focused on preparing candidates to teach language arts to students with disabilities. The session will present research results, implications for teacher preparation programs, and impact on P12 student learning.

Presenter Information: Lisa Beymer, Ed.D., is a Clinical Assistant Professor for the Early & Special Education Department at Boise State University. Lisa’s teaching for the department focuses on evidence-based instructional practices for students with disabilities, diagnostic assessment use and analysis, and Universal Design for Learning. Lisa also works as a University Liaison for the College of Education, supervising pre-service teacher candidates who are completing their final student teaching experiences in the general and special education classrooms. As a part of the larger Boise State community, Lisa is the Faculty Advisor for the Special Olympics College student club and co-Advisor for the Teacher Education Ambassador student club. Lisa’s research interests include special education teacher effectiveness, special education teacher preparation, and evidence-based practices for students with disabilities.

Session Description: Knowing more than 40% of teachers leave the profession within the first five years, and feeling the effects of our national teacher shortage, how do we best support and retain new teachers? The secondary instructional coach team from Twin Falls School District will share a system of support including retired mentors, full-release instructional coaches, and new teacher cohorts to both retain and build the effectiveness of our new teachers.

Presenter Information: Kimberly Allen began teaching in 1990 in Salt Lake City and has since taught in North Carolina, Maryland, and Idaho. She holds a bachelor's degree in secondary education from the University of Utah (with an English major/Spanish minor) and a Master of Education degree from Boise State University. A former teacher of Language Arts and English as a Second Language (ESL), she is currently serving her seventh year as an instructional coach at Canyon Ridge High School in the Twin Falls School District. Kim is also an active member of the Idaho Core Coaching Network.

Nathan Anderson has been a Social Studies and ESL teacher with the Twin Falls School District since 2011. He is currently the instructional coach at Robert Stuart Middle School and the Bridge Academy. He graduated from Utah State University with a major in History Education and minors in ESL and Business Management. He holds a Master of Science in Education from Western Governor’s University. Nathan has a passion for education and its foundational role in the development of our community and our future generations.

Sara Dorman is currently the Instructional Coach at O’Leary Middle School and Bridge Academy. She graduated in 2006 from the University of Idaho with a major in secondary education, having an emphasis in English and a minor in math. After moving to Twin Falls to teach math, Sara completed her master’s degree in curriculum and instruction in 2009. A huge passion Sara has as the PBIS liaison at her school is relationship building among teachers and students. If there is no connection between the two, there can be no progress with improving student behaviors.

After ten years as a secondary English teacher and coach of women’s athletics in Idaho’s public schools, Sue Wade spent ten years supervising K-12 student teachers for Boise State University. She received her undergraduate degree from the College of Idaho in Health/PE while minoring in English and Psychology. With an Athletic Administration master’s degree from Idaho State University, Sue has coached in various educational and transformational environments throughout the western U.S. As a fifth year instructional coach for the Twin Falls School District, she enjoys working with teachers at Twin Falls and Magic Valley High Schools.

Session Description: This presentation will feature instructional methods that focus on unique active and vibrant learning environments, highlighting experiences from science disciplines, and will emphasize direct ELL preparation to ensure success and promote purposeful collaboration. Teaching strategies and methodologies focusing on active, hands-on learning in the ENL and science classroom will be discussed. Challenging activities will be suggested that can be adjusted for a variety of abilities across age groups featuring key transferable competencies. Exploration of best practices that build a culture of innovation and prepare students for the global workforce will be addressed. Future focused ELL pedagogy and coursework reflecting cross disciplinary content and creatively engaged and involved students in an inclusive learning environment will be presented along with accompanying assessment methods to build on students’ strengths and prior knowledge.

Conference Strand: English Learners, School Improvement, Family and Community Engagement (FACE)Suggested Audience: Building Leadership, District Leadership, Paraprofessionals, Teachers

Presenter Information: Diane Boothe is Director of P-20 Outreach and Professor of Literacy, Language and Culture at Boise State University. She served as Dean of the College of Education at Boise State University for nine years. Dr. Boothe holds a doctorate from the University of Southern California and was president of Georgia TESOL and Chair of TESOL International Higher Education Interest Section. Her public school experience includes teaching in the ESL and science fields, as well as serving as a school principal in California.

Melissa Caspary is an Assistant Professor of Biology at Georgia Gwinnett College. Her research interests include the exploration of regional biogeographic change of rare plant species’ distributions due to climate change and disturbance, ecological community networks of plants and their pollinators in specialized habitats, and integrating active learning and technology into science education. She has published and presented on disturbance and invasion in granite rock outcrop plant communities, native plant propagation and habitat restoration in the South-eastern United States, and the role of problem based learning and technology in science education.

Session Description: By beginning to actively work on teaching children how to complete everyday skills independently, doors are opened for more skills and more opportunities for learning. This presentation will focus on identifying the barriers to independence and how to increase independence by breaking down skills into smaller, teachable steps.

Presenter Information: Whitney Schexnider is an Instructional Coordinator for Idaho SESTA. Over the course of her career in both Virginia and Idaho, Whitney has worked as a Paraprofessional supporting students with behavioral needs, a Special Education Teacher, an ABA Coach and a Behavior Specialist.

Session Description: This session is designed for educators who are looking for effective, engaging methods to teach foundational math skills. Using math story mats is the perfect way to teach all of the kindergarten Idaho Core Math Standards (and many first grade skills as well) in a way that makes math meaningful and interactive. Math story mats incorporate language skills and therefore support English Language learners. The mats are easy to create and can be used with parents as well. The presenter will align the activities to current research and present data from Idaho schools using math story mats.

Presenter Information: Cristianne Lane, M.Ed, is the Director of Professional Development at Lee Pesky Learning Center, a non-profit dedicated to improving the lives of people with learning disabilities through prevention, evaluation, treatment and research. With over 28 years of experience in the field of education, Cristianne provides instructional guidance, support, and training to school districts, organizations, and educators across the state. She is also the Director of the Idaho Early Literacy Project. Cristianne has a Master’s degree in Literacy Education and a Bachelor of Science degree in Elementary Education with a minor in Mathematics.

Session Description: This presentation will cover major considerations for students with disabilities who exhibit challenging behaviors. Topics will include legal considerations under I.D.E.A., change of placements, positive behavior supports, behavior intervention plans, and the utilization of school resource officers. Administrations will leave the session with practical advice and strategies to support the provision of a Free and Appropriate Public Education (FAPE) for all students. The recent OSEP dear colleague letter will frame the discussion on the need for appropriate and responsible behavioral practices in school settings.

Presenter Information: Greg Sampson is a member of the Idaho SESTA team at Boise State University. He has worked for 14 years in special education settings -- the classroom, teacher preparation, and research. He brings strong content knowledge in Positive Behavior Supports and applied behavior analysis to his technical assistance work in special education.

Session Description: During this fast-paced, highly interactive session, participants will engage with a variety of animated mathematical thinking models, which are built from triggered, interactive PowerPoint templates. Participants will learn how to design their own animated thinking models from the templates provided by the presenter and will learn how to effectively use them to promote mathematical discourse. Participants will also learn how to leverage mathematical thinking models to promote a classroom community in which thinking is valued, risks are supported, and questions are discovered. All participants will be given the interactive, triggered PowerPoint templates from the presentation as well as directions regarding how to use them so that the thinking models can immediately be used in their own classrooms.

Presenter Information: Steve Wyborney is the K-12 District Math Coach in the Ontario School District. He is well known for his use of instructional technology and his passion for mathematics. Steve is deeply committed to contributing to the learning of educators and students, both regionally and globally, through the power of professional development and social media. He is the author of 14 books, presents at numerous conferences, and was the 2005 Oregon Teacher of the Year.

Session Description: In this session, Title I instructional coaches will share how to develop and implement a sustainable system of support for reading and mathematics intervention so that all students receive differentiated tier 2 and tier 3 instruction. Presenters will model how to target specific skill deficits, determine appropriate intervention instruction, and use general outcome and mastery measures to monitor progress in reading and mathematics. In addition, presenters will discuss the benefits of standardizing protocols across buildings as a foundational step toward systemwide reform.

Presenter Information: Angela Lee has taught in the classroom for 26 years in kindergarten, 3rd, 4th, and 5th grades. She has a Bachelor’s degree in Elementary Education from The University of Minnesota, Moorhead and a Master’s degree in Curriculum and Instruction from Idaho State University. She also has an ENL endorsement. As a Title I Instructional coach, she works with principals, teachers, para professionals, and reading interventionists as they design and deliver research based, targeted intervention instruction in reading and math.

Rachel Miller is a District 91 instructional coach with expertise in reading instruction and intervention.
Dr. Gail Rochelle is the District 91 Director of Student Achievement and School Improvement. She has worked in education as a teacher and administrator for over 25 years. She has a B.S. in Secondary Education - Language Arts from The University of Nebraska, a M.Ed. in Educational Administration from Idaho State University, and a Ph.D. in English Education from The University of Virginia.

Session Description: When EL's arrive in our classrooms, they often find themselves in a different cultural world. Therefore, it might be efficacious to instruct them in some of the paradigms that inform North Americans' interpretations of social reality. In this presentation we will address some deeper cultural issues where the paradigms of most EL's would differ significantly from those of the United States. We plan to address individualism vs. collectivism, emotional expressivity tolerance, monochronic vs. polychronic time, power distance, and several others. The practical classroom application of these concepts will be discussed.

Presenter Information: We are both professors at BYU-Idaho and, among other things, teach in the TESOL Education Minor. Dr. Paul directs the minor. We have many years of experience giving presentations at conferences and have 10-15 academic publications between us. Dr. Ivers recently published a chapter in a book dealing with foreign students and cultural differences. Dr. Paul has been involved in several book projects concerning Chinese culture. Dr. Paul has also been heavily involved in TESOL organizations nationally and internationally and will keynote at several conferences in Asia this summer.

Session Description: ELs’ oral communication styles come from rich cultural backgrounds where knowledge is taught and processed through story and home language dialogue. Even in today’s rich print-heavy and tech-savvy society, culturally and linguistically diverse families’ oral communication traditions are still used to teach children life skills and to pass along important cultural knowledge. Participants will learn strategies that build on these traditions to provide effective language development necessary for our ELs to become skilled English language users who achieve the levels of language and literacy competence required for success. Those strategies include interaction and engagement in academic discourse that allow students to expand their vocabulary and language acquisition.

Presenter Information: Rosie Santana currently serves as the Senior Advisor in Equity and School Improvement at Education Northwest. Prior to her work at Education Northwest Rosie served as the EL coordinator for Neuhaus Education Center where she offered coaching and support at all levels of the school system centered on collective school improvement and student achievement. Prior to her work at Neuhaus, Rosie was the Idaho Southwest School Improvement Coordinator. She developed educational reform strategies built around school effectiveness and led the state’s school improvement coaches, where she trained others in how to build capacity for effective change. Rosalie earned her bachelor’s degree in Education from Boise State University and her M.A. in Education from University of Idaho in the area of Educational Administration and Leadership.

Session Description: Strategies for improving meetings and relationships with parents and schools will be explored. Additionally, a review of services available to districts and parents from the SDE Dispute Resolution office will be covered.

Conference Strand: Special Education (IDEA Part B), Family and Community Engagement (FACE)Suggested Audience: Building Leadership, District Leadership, Paraprofessionals, Program Specific Staff, Teachers

Presenter Information: Melanie is the Dispute Resolution Coordinator for Special Education at the Idaho State Department of Education.

Session Description: Universal Design for Learning (UDL) is based in neuroscience that identifies three critical networks of the brain: strategic, affective, and recognition (Rose, 2001; Rose & Meyer, 2000). Three principles of UDL (i.e. multiple means of engagement, expression, and representation) emerged from the knowledge of these three brain networks and stem from the research stating that people differ in (a) how they process and understand information (i.e. recognition network), (b) how they organize and express thoughts and knowledge (i.e. strategic network), and (c) how they engage in learning and remain motivated (i.e. affective network) (Center on Applied Special Technology, n.d.). Traditional instructional strategies that do not align with UDL principles are based on the assumption that all students learn in the same way and should be assessed in the same way as well. This limited view on how we learn and process information has been creating obstacles for students to access information, to express their learning, and to engage in the learning process. This presentation will focus on the learner variability as well as the principles, guidelines, and checkpoints of UDL and make clear and practical connections to classroom instruction.

Presenter Information: Dr. Aleksandra Hollingshead is an assistant professor of special education at the University of Idaho in Moscow, ID. She was born and raised in Poland and moved to the United States in 2003. Upon earning a Master degree in special education, Dr. Hollingshead worked as a special education teacher with students with autism and severe behaviors. She earned her doctorate degree from the University of Cincinnati in 2013. Dr. Hollingshead’s research interests focus on engagement in learning. She examines engagement’s definition and strategies for supporting it, especially for students with autism and severe developmental disabilities.

Session Description: This session is designed for paraprofessionals who deliver reading instruction. The “big ideas,” along with strategies and techniques for increasing student achievement and engagement, will be presented in the areas of phonemic awareness, phonics, fluency, vocabulary and comprehension. Management tips and techniques will also be shared.

Presenter Information: Anna Maderis, M.A., works in the Professional Development Department at Lee Pesky Learning Center, a non-profit dedicated to improving the lives of people with learning disabilities through prevention, evaluation, treatment and research. With over 36 years of experience in the field of education in grades kindergarten through the college level, Anna provides instructional guidance, support, and training to school districts, organizations, and educators across the state. She has a Master’s degree in the Arts of Teaching and a Bachelor of Arts degree in Education.

Session Description: The Hidden Rules of Poverty is a small portion of the full day Bridges out of Poverty training but provides insight into understanding how our families think and function in poverty. Understanding their way of thinking can help when it comes to case management, rapport building and establishing relationships with those who are seeking help.

Presenter Information: Steffanie has been Social Worker for the last 5 years in Denver, CO, Cheyenne, WY and now in Nampa, ID. She has worked with low-income and homeless families providing anything from case management to program management. Her skills and passion have furthered her understanding and passion, leading her to educate others on another way in overcoming complexities of working with this population.

Session Description: Join the Lakeland Core Leadership Team as they discuss their journey in building authentic, lasting change within their school district modeling the Idaho Core Teacher Network. During this session, participants will gain insight into the creation of a teacher-led professional development program, while also learning new skills and strategies that they can easily implement into the classroom. Participants will have the opportunity to reflect on this scaffolded approach, and brainstorm ways to apply this to their classroom, grade level, building, and/or district.

Presenter Information: Laura Spurway is the Gifted and Talented Education Instructor for 4-6th grade in the Lakeland School District. With 5 years of experience in her current role, she has also had 5 years as a general classroom teacher in 6th grade. Along with her endorsement in Gifted and Talented Education, she has also been an Idaho Core participant for two years, and part of the leadership team for the Lakeland Core Teacher Program for two years as well. Her passion focuses around teaching creativity and inspiring creative thought in others.

Julie Anderson has taught 4-6th grade and is currently teaching 6th grade. She has enjoyed working in the Lakeland School District for 19 years, but has found a new passion for teaching since getting to be involved in the Idaho Core Teacher Network and playing a key leadership role in the Lakeland Core Teacher Program. Julie has her master’s degree in Education and hopes to continue to help teachers engage their students in deeper level learning with new strategies in writing across the curriculum.

Megan Ferguson teaches 10th, 11th, and 12th grade English Language Arts at Timberlake High School in Spirit Lake, ID. Megan has worked for the Lakeland Joint School District for 10 years, 3 years in her current position, and 7 years as a junior high teacher. In 2014, she received her master's degree in Curriculum and Instruction and continues to educate herself through programs such as the Idaho Core Teacher Network, the Lakeland Core Teacher Program and the Northwest Inland Writing Project. She has also received her certification in Instructional Coaching, in hopes of continuing to share her experiences through the teachers-teaching-teachers model.

Session Description: In Visible Learning for Teachers, John Hattie states that the role of the student “is not simply to do tasks as decided by teachers, but to actively manage and understand their learning gains.” Students’ deeper understanding of their own proficiency inspires them to take ownership of their own learning. This presentation focuses on interpreting assessment data for the purposes of empowering students to understand their own proficiency levels and to set learning targets/goals for themselves. Attendees will have the opportunity to deconstruct student data and work samples in order to create lesson plans that help students make sense of their own data. This training invites teachers to shift the common practice of the teacher-centered classroom to a more effective student-centered model.

Presenter Information: Jenny Mundy-Castle holds degrees from Columbia University (literature and writing), Pace University (M.S. in teaching), University of New Mexico (Ed. Cert. Educational Leadership), and the College of Idaho (Ed.S. in English as a New Language). She has nearly two decades of experience in teaching, educational administration, and instructional coaching.

Rachel Ferrell holds degrees from Arizona State University (B.A. in multi-cultural/multi-lingual elementary education, and M.A. in curriculum and instruction, ELS and biliteracy) and a decade of experience in education.

Olivia Tate holds degrees from Northwest Nazarene University (international studies), the University of Maryland Baltimore County (M.A. instructional systems development and English for Speakers of Other Languages), and NNU (Ed.S. in educational leadership). She has over two decades of experience in teaching and instructional coaching.

Session Description: The explanation of how reinforcement influences behavior is one of the greatest achievements within psychology during the last century. Have you ever said "I tried using reinforcement and it didn't work"? or "We tried using a token economy and it didn't work" if so then this presentation is for you! Learn the principles of reinforcement and how to make it as effective as possible to enhance behavior change.

Presenter Information: Kathleen has been working in the field of intellectual disabilities and autism for twenty six years. She is a Board Certified Behavior Analyst who began her career working with children who had intellectual disabilities in a summer camp outside of New York City. She has an extensive background working with adults in intermediate care facilities and day programs. Currently she owns and administrates Riverside Service Group, in Idaho Falls. Kathleen has provided behavior consultation to a number of school districts in Eastern Idaho for many years. Passionate about teaching the principles of applied behavior analysis she supervises up and coming Board Certified Behavior Analysts and can be found training others in a variety of situations. The ability to assist the people she serves make meaningful changes in their lives is what fuels her passion!

Session Description: Two secondary mathematics educators share classroom strategies for implementing academic language into K-12 mathematics content. Strategy descriptions, student examples, and hands on demonstrations and activities will be used. The goal of the presentation will be to show how powerful the partnership between language development and mathematics content can be for both ELs and non ELs.

Presenter Information: Meg Rowe and Whitney Danner have both been teaching math at South Junior High School for the last 5 years. Both women received their undergraduate degrees from Boise State, Whitney in Elementary Education and Meg in Secondary Mathematics. Together, Whitney and Meg earned their Master's Degrees through the Mathematics Consulting Teacher program from Boise State in December of 2015. At South Junior High, Whitney and Meg teach a diverse group of students, many of them refugees, with a wide range of language needs. Additionally, Whitney and Meg have both been a part of the EL co-teaching program established at South for the past 2 years.

Session Description: Create a classroom in which students are intellectually active in the learning process. This workshop explores the four questions around student engagement and shows how the Framework for Teaching provides support.

What does engagement look like? Sound like? Feel like?

How does one plan for engagement?

How does one observe for engagement?

What does research say about engagement?

“Student engagement in learning is the centerpiece of the Framework for Teaching; all other components contribute to it.” The Framework for Teaching, 2013. P.69

Presenter Information: Joanie Peterson is a graduate of the University of California at Davis, whose 30 year career span includes classroom teacher, counselor, central office Human Resources and Professional Development administrator and Board of Trustee in the K-12 education system; faculty member, counselor and administrator at the community college and university level. Peterson specializes in recruitment and the hiring process, mentor and induction programs, instructional coaching and teacher evaluation based on the Danielson Framework for Teaching since 2001. Peterson as a Danielson Group consultant provides support in facilitating professional development on teacher effectiveness, data-driven decision making processes, observation, calibration, and teacher evaluation design using the Framework for Teaching.

Kathleen Hanson has spent 35 years in public service for Idaho’s school children, 19 years in the classroom and 16 years as administrator. She’s been directly involved with the Frameworks for Teaching; leading the development of a supervision and evaluation model in three school districts as Human Resources Administrator, principal, and consultant. She currently works as a consultant in the Frameworks for Teaching, Adaptive Schools, and as a Capacity Builder for Boise State University Center for School Improvement and Policy Studies.

Session Description: Come hear two different approaches to holding a successful migrant summer school when there is not a lot of funding available to do it. Weiser hasn’t had migrant summer school since 2012, but is bringing it back with the excitement of a total eclipse of the sun. For the last several years, Homedale and Marsing have found a way together to have a great summer program by sharing costs and kids in a joint program. If you’ve ever thought, “Gosh, I wish we could afford to have a migrant summer program to help prevent summer slide for our migrant students” this is the session for you. Expect to learn ways to have a great program that provide learning and enrichment without spending a lot of money.

Presenter Information: Christine Ketterling earned a Bachelor’s degree in Elementary Education from Boise State University. After completing her degree she became employed by the Homedale School District. She worked as the 21st Century Community Learning Center Director and an elementary teacher while completing her Master’s from Northwest Nazarene University in Curriculum and Instruction. She is currently severing as Federal Programs Director and Curriculum and Instruction Specialist and recently completed her Ed. Specialist degree in Educational Leadership from Northwest Nazarene University.

William Morriss is currently the Federal Programs and Special Education Director for the Weiser School District. Prior to that, he was the Special Populations Coordinator with the Idaho Department of Education for three years In that capacity, he provided special education general supervision and technical assistance for Charter Schools, private and alternative schools, the Department of Juvenile Corrections and the Department of Corrections. Prior to that, he worked at the Department of Juvenile Corrections as a special education instructor, working with students in a mental health unit.

Session Description: Research has proven that the earlier and more prolonged parents are involved with their children's education, their academic capabilities increase. Unfortunately, if a parent does not feel connected with school systems, parent involvement weakens, and so does student success. This workshop will address areas that impact the perception parents may have about educational systems and how bridging this gap can strengthen student success.

Conference Strand: Family and Community Engagement (FACE)Suggested Audience: Building Leadership, District Leadership, Paraprofessionals, Program Specific Staff, Teachers

Presenter Information: Jose is originally from McAllen, TX and migrated to Washington as a migrant farm worker. He came from a family of 16. Jose began his professional career as a Washington State Trooper for the Washington State Patrol. He left the Patrol and began to work in Prevention/Intervention services. Jose has over 26 years as an administrator and is committed to strengthening families.

Session Description: In this session, Title I instructional coaches will share how to develop and implement a sustainable system of support for reading and mathematics intervention so that all students receive differentiated Tier 2 and Tier 3 instruction. Presenters will model how to target specific skill deficits, determine appropriate intervention instruction, and use general outcome and mastery measures to monitor progress in reading and mathematics. In addition, presenters will discuss the benefits of standardizing protocols across buildings as a foundational step toward systemwide reform.

Presenter Information: Angela Lee has taught in the classroom for 26 years in kindergarten, 3rd, 4th, and 5th grades. She has a Bachelor’s degree in Elementary Education from The University of Minnesota, Moorhead and a Master’s degree in Curriculum and Instruction from Idaho State University. She also has an ENL endorsement. As a Title I Instructional coach, she works with principals, teachers, para professionals, and reading interventionists as they design and deliver research based, targeted intervention instruction in reading and math.

Rachel Miller is a District 91 instructional coach with expertise in reading instruction and intervention.
Dr. Gail Rochelle is the District 91 Director of Student Achievement and School Improvement. She has worked in education as a teacher and administrator for over 25 years. She has a B.S. in Secondary Education - Language Arts from The University of Nebraska, a M.Ed. in Educational Administration from Idaho State University, and a Ph.D. in English Education from The University of Virginia.

Session Description: A hands-on strategies workshop designed for the classroom teacher. Strategies selected for this training will be directed toward teachers who serve EL populations, however, can be utilized in any class setting. The focus will be a professional, collaborative, opportunity to experience some teaching strategies through guided practice in a small group style.

Conference Strand: English LearnersSuggested Audience: Teachers

Presenter Information: Currently, Terah directs the graduate programs in education at The College of Idaho. She has been teaching at the College of Idaho for five years. Prior to her current teaching role, she taught at George Fox University in teacher preparation and taught 5/6th grades for seven years in a bilingual school in a local school district in the Treasure Valley. She has the heart for teaching and believes in our roles as educators.

Presenter Information: Angie Williams is a School-Based Medicaid Policy Specialist at the Idaho Department of Health & Welfare, Frede Trenkle is a Medicaid Integrity Analysis at the Idaho Department of Health & Welfare, and Shannon Dunstan is the Early Childhood and Interagency Coordinator at the Idaho State Department of Education.

Session Description: This session will help participants understand learning differences that are more subtle in nature but still have an adverse impact on the student’s ability to benefit from general education. Participants will increase their knowledge of these invisible disabilities and how to communicate the learning differences to other educators. This session will provide participants with information regarding accommodations or supports that are beneficial to students with learning differences in the school setting. Participants will receive guidance on how to communicate with their colleagues the importance of effective accommodations for students with learning differences.

Presenter Information: Nichole Kristensen in an Instructional Coordinator for Idaho SESTA. Over the course of her career she has worked as a special education teacher within resource and extended resource classrooms and has been a mentor to new special education teachers. She now provides support and technical assistance to school districts in Idaho and is currently pursuing a degree in Educational Leadership.

Session Description: We will compare and contrast the U.S. and Mexican School Systems. Classroom teachers and administrators will find it easier to serve students and families by better understanding the expectations of those coming from a different school system.

Conference Strand: Family and Community Engagement (FACE)Suggested Audience: Program Specific Staff

Presenter Information: Christina Alvarez is the current Migrant Family Liaison in the Blackfoot School District. Christina has over 31 years of experience with the Migrant Education Program. She also serves as the Regional ID&R Coordinator in Region 5. Christina has served as the Coordinator for the Migrant Binational Program for over 8 years traveling to Mexico to interview and train potential teacher to participate in the Idaho Migrant Binational Teacher Exchange Program.

Session Description: This session is designed for paraprofessionals who deliver reading instruction. The “big ideas,” along with strategies and techniques for increasing student achievement and engagement, will be presented in the areas of phonemic awareness, phonics, fluency, vocabulary and comprehension. Management tips and techniques will also be shared.

Presenter Information: Anna Maderis, M.A., works in the Professional Development Department at Lee Pesky Learning Center, a non-profit dedicated to improving the lives of people with learning disabilities through prevention, evaluation, treatment and research. With over 36 years of experience in the field of education in grades kindergarten through the college level, Anna provides instructional guidance, support, and training to school districts, organizations, and educators across the state. She has a Master’s degree in the Arts of Teaching and a Bachelor of Arts degree in Education.

Session Description: The Hidden Rules of Poverty is a small portion of the full day Bridges out of Poverty training but provides insight into understanding how our families think and function in poverty. Understanding their way of thinking can help when it comes to case management, rapport building and establishing relationships with those who are seeking help.

Presenter Information: Steffanie has been Social Worker for the last 5 years in Denver, CO, Cheyenne, WY and now in Nampa, ID. She has worked with low-income and homeless families providing anything from case management to program management. Her skills and passion have furthered her understanding and passion, leading her to educate others on another way in overcoming complexities of working with this population.

Session Description: Join the Lakeland Core Leadership Team as they discuss their journey in building authentic, lasting change within their school district modeling the Idaho Core Teacher Network. During this session, participants will gain insight into the creation of a teacher-led professional development program, while also learning new skills and strategies that they can easily implement into the classroom. Participants will have the opportunity to reflect on this scaffolded approach, and brainstorm ways to apply this to their classroom, grade level, building, and/or district.

Presenter Information: Laura Spurway is the Gifted and Talented Education Instructor for 4-6th grade in the Lakeland School District. With 5 years’ experience in her current role, she has also had 5 years as a general classroom teacher in 6th grade. Along with her endorsement in Gifted and Talented Education, she has also been an Idaho Core participant for two years, and part of the leadership team for the Lakeland Core Teacher Program for two years as well. Her passion focuses around teaching creativity and inspiring creative thought in others.

Julie Anderson has taught 4-6th grade and is currently teaching 6th grade. She has enjoyed working in the Lakeland School District for 19 years, but has found a new passion for teaching since getting to be involved in the Idaho Core Teacher Network and playing a key leadership role in the Lakeland Core Teacher Program. Julie has her master’s degree in Education and hopes to continue to help teachers engage their students in deeper level learning with new strategies in writing across the curriculum.

Megan Ferguson teaches 10th, 11th, and 12th grade English Language Arts at Timberlake High School in Spirit Lake, ID. Megan has worked for the Lakeland Joint School District for 10 years, 3 years in her current position, and 7 years as a junior high teacher. In 2014, she received her master's degree in Curriculum and Instruction and continues to educate herself through programs such as the Idaho Core Teacher Network, the Lakeland Core Teacher Program and the Northwest Inland Writing Project. She has also received her certification in Instructional Coaching, in hopes of continuing to share her experiences through the teachers-teaching-teachers model.

Session Description: In Visible Learning for Teachers, John Hattie states that the role of the student “is not simply to do tasks as decided by teachers, but to actively manage and understand their learning gains.” Students’ deeper understanding of their own proficiency inspires them to take ownership of their own learning. This presentation focuses on interpreting assessment data for the purposes of empowering students to understand their own proficiency levels and to set learning targets/goals for themselves. Attendees will have the opportunity to deconstruct student data and work samples in order to create lesson plans that help students make sense of their own data. This training invites teachers to shift the common practice of the teacher-centered classroom to a more effective student-centered model.

Presenter Information: Jenny Mundy-Castle holds degrees from Columbia University (literature and writing), Pace University (M.S. in teaching), University of New Mexico (Ed. Cert. Educational Leadership), and the College of Idaho (Ed.S. in English as a New Language). She has nearly two decades of experience in teaching, educational administration, and instructional coaching.

Rachel Ferrell holds degrees from Arizona State University (B.A. in multi-cultural/multi-lingual elementary education, and M.A. in Curriculum and Instruction, ELS and Bi-literacy) and has a decade of experience in education.

Olivia Tate holds degrees from Northwest Nazarene University (International Studies), the University of Maryland Baltimore County (M.A. Instructional Systems Development and English for Speakers of Other Languages), and NNU (Ed.S. in Educational Leadership). She has over two decades of experience in teaching and instructional coaching.

Session Description: Create a classroom in which students are intellectually active in the learning process. This workshop explores the four questions around student engagement and shows how the Framework for Teaching provides support.

What does engagement look like? Sound like? Feel like?

How does one plan for engagement?

How does one observe for engagement?

What does research say about engagement?

“Student engagement in learning is the centerpiece of the Framework for Teaching; all other components contribute to it.” The Framework for Teaching, 2013. P.69

Presenter Information: Joanie Peterson is a graduate of the University of California at Davis, whose 30 year career span includes classroom teacher, counselor, central office Human Resources and Professional Development administrator and Board of Trustee in the K-12 education system; faculty member, counselor and administrator at the community college and university level. Peterson specializes in recruitment and the hiring process, mentor and induction programs, instructional coaching and teacher evaluation based on the Danielson Framework for Teaching since 2001. Peterson as a Danielson Group consultant provides support in facilitating professional development on teacher effectiveness, data-driven decision making processes, observation, calibration, and teacher evaluation design using the Framework for Teaching.

Kathleen Hanson has spent 35 years in public service for Idaho’s school children, 19 years in the classroom and 16 years as administrator. She’s been directly involved with the Frameworks for Teaching; leading the development of a supervision and evaluation model in three school districts as Human Resources Administrator, principal, and consultant. She currently works as a consultant in the Frameworks for Teaching, Adaptive Schools, and as a Capacity Builder for Boise State University Center for School Improvement and Policy Studies.

Session Description: The explanation of how reinforcement influences behavior is one of the greatest achievements within psychology during the last century. Have you ever said "I tried using reinforcement and it didn't work"? or "We tried using a token economy and it didn't work" if so then this presentation is for you! Learn the principles of reinforcement and how to make it as effective as possible to enhance behavior change.

Presenter Information: Kathleen has been working in the field of intellectual disabilities and autism for twenty six years. She is a Board Certified Behavior Analyst who began her career working with children who had intellectual disabilities in a summer camp outside of New York City. She has an extensive background working with adults in intermediate care facilities and day programs. Currently she owns and administrates Riverside Service Group, in Idaho Falls. Kathleen has provided behavior consultation to a number of school districts in Eastern Idaho for many years. Passionate about teaching the principles of applied behavior analysis she supervises up and coming Board Certified Behavior Analysts and can be found training others in a variety of situations. The ability to assist the people she serves make meaningful changes in their lives is what fuels her passion!

Session Description: Do you have any newcomers with little to no English? Are you stuck trying to figure out how to support their English development while surviving in secondary education? The Title III Consortium and IDLA are pleased to present EL 101! This course was developed by experienced ESL Educators Victoria Potts and Todd Zollinger. Come find out about the course and how you can support newcomer language development through a course that teaches students English through content!

Conference Strand: English LearnersSuggested Audience: Building Leadership, District Leadership, Program Specific Staff, Teachers

Presenter Information: Dr. Sherawn Reberry is currently the Director of Education Programs at Idaho Digital Learning Academy. IDLA is Idaho’s Virtual School established by the Idaho Legislature in 2002. Reberry is an experienced building level principal and assistant superintendent. Additionally, she continues her duties as online principal for IDLA as she has the previous eight years. Reberry received her Doctorate in Education (EdD) in 2002 in Educational Leadership with emphasis in Instructional Technology.

Victoria Potts currently works for the Moscow School District as an LEP Teacher/Title III Coordinator. She has taught ESL for over 20 years in higher education, abroad, and now statewide for public schools K-12. She has an MA/TESL as well as a BA in Spanish Language and Culture. In addition to English, she has also taught Spanish at the college level.

Todd Zollinger is the ESL Coach/Coordinator for Jefferson Joint School District (Rigby).

Session Description: Migrant programs offer a variety of possible services to help a very vulnerable population be successful in K-12 schools and beyond. This session will provide practical information about planning and running a successful migrant program at every funding level. From the big picture to the details of success, this session will be both informative and hands-on. Plan to come away with ideas that you can put into practice in your district. If you aren’t a migrant funded district, but are curious about what the migrant program offers students and families, you will get a good understanding about what the program can provide. Presenters will be from small rural districts with very little funding to bigger districts with more funding to implement services. Presenting: Small funds migrant district – Bruneau Grand View. Medium funds migrant district – Homedale. More funds district – Twin Falls.

Presenter Information: Patty Dalrymple received her Teaching Certificate from Montana State University. After moving to Idaho, she achieved National Board Certification by the National Board of Professional Teaching Standards followed by a Master's Degree from Boise State University in Curriculum and Instruction. She spent 30 years in the classroom teaching 2-4th grades mostly for the Bruneau Grand View School District. For the past two years she served as a Title I Teacher/ EL/ Migrant Director for the district. Currently she serves as the district's Federal Programs Director/Instructional Coach and is obtaining an K-12 ENL endorsement.

Bill Brulotte graduated from Idaho State University with and Bachelor’s and Master’s Degree in school administration. He is in his third year as the Federal Programs Director in the Twin Falls School District. He spent a combined 17 years as a building administrator at the elementary, middle, and high school level where he helped develop and implement programs for EL, Migrant, and Title I students. In 1999-2001 Brulotte served in the Peace Corps/Kenya where he taught math, Chemistry and English. In 2009 Brulotte was named Idaho’s National Distinguished Elementary Principal.

Christine Ketterling earned a Bachelor’s degree in Elementary Education from Boise State University. After completing her degree she became employed by the Homedale School District. She worked as the 21st Century Community Learning Center Director and an elementary teacher while completing her Master’s from Northwest Nazarene University in Curriculum and Instruction. She is currently severing as Federal Programs Director and Curriculum and Instruction Specialist and recently completed her Ed. Specialist degree in Educational Leadership from Northwest Nazarene University.

Session Description: Universal Design for Learning (UDL) is based in neuroscience that identifies three critical networks of the brain: strategic, affective, and recognition (Rose, 2001; Rose & Meyer, 2000). Three principles of UDL (i.e. multiple means of engagement, expression, and representation) emerged from the knowledge of these three brain networks and stem from the research stating that people differ in (a) how they process and understand information (i.e. recognition network), (b) how they organize and express thoughts and knowledge (i.e. strategic network), and (c) how they engage in learning and remain motivated (i.e. affective network) (Center on Applied Special Technology, n.d.). Traditional instructional strategies that do not align with UDL principles are based on the assumption that all students learn in the same way and should be assessed in the same way as well. This limited view on how we learn and process information has been creating obstacles for students to access information, to express their learning, and to engage in the learning process. This presentation will focus on the learner variability as well as the principles, guidelines, and checkpoints of UDL and make clear and practical connections to classroom instruction.

Presenter Information: Dr. Aleksandra Hollingshead is an assistant professor of special education at the University of Idaho in Moscow, ID. She was born and raised in Poland and moved to the United States in 2003. Upon earning a Master degree in special education, Dr. Hollingshead worked as a special education teacher with students with autism and severe behaviors. She earned her doctorate degree from the University of Cincinnati in 2013. Dr. Hollingshead’s research interests focus on engagement in learning. She examines engagement’s definition and strategies for supporting it, especially for students with autism and severe developmental disabilities.

Session Description: How much ownership do your students have for their learning? Drive through a road map of Personalized Learning in a classroom that keeps learners engaged all day long with individualized goals for a variety of subjects. Discover how easy it is to keep your students on track with simple tips and tricks of engagement and motivation. Teachers from a rural school will share their experiences of being able to remove grade level identification, increase student work exponentially, increase student agency, eliminating off task behaviors and closing the achievement gap for at-risk students. You will take away the fundamental tools to be able to implement these strategies in your classroom.

Presenter Information: Stephanie and Rebecca are both teacher-mentors at Wilder Elementary. Together, they have a total of 8 years of teaching, all with the Wilder School District. Stephanie has a Master's of Education from George Fox University and Rebecca graduated from Boise State University with her undergrad in Elementary Education. They have used many mulligans in the process of using Personalized Learning to keep students engaged and help differentiate. Through many trials, they have developed tools that have helped keep their students wanting to learn more on a daily basis while taking ownership of their learning! Also, Rebecca's 8 year old son is in Stephanie's classroom this year!

Lynn Rivera has been with the Wilder School District for 20 years and has taught for 13 of those years. She has a Bachelor’s in Elementary Ed with endorsements in Bilingual Ed and ESL. She is currently the lead teacher in the elementary.

Crystal Hatt has been with the Wilder School District teaching kindergarten for two years. Before joining the Wilder School District she taught preschool for nine years. She has a Bachelor’s in Elementary Ed and Special Ed and will graduate with her Masters degree in Spring of 2017.

Carolyn Howard has been with the Wilder School District for one year. Previous to teaching in the Wilder School District she taught special education for 3 years. She currently holds a teaching certificate in special education and elementary education. She is currently teaching 2nd grade at Wilder Elementary.

Session Description: This session will introduce the essential components of Response to Intervention (RTI) using examples. This session is most appropriate for schools and districts in the beginning stages of implementing RTI or those without RTI wishing to begin utilizing it for all students. This session will be the precursor to the session “Refining your RTI Systems.” Participants would want to attend the “Refining your RTI Systems” session or have knowledge of RTI prior to attending this session.

Conference Strand: Supporting Effective Instruction: Title II-A, Title I-A, School ImprovementSuggested Audience: Building Leadership, District Leadership, Program Specific Staff, Teachers

Presenter Information: Alayna Gee is the RTI coordinator at the Idaho State Department of Education and director of the State Personnel Development Grant (SPDG) focused on Implementing RTI within schools and district in Idaho. She has been in education for 15 years, 6 of which she has worked directly with RTI and systems improvement in schools.

Session Description: Idaho Digital Learning is implementing new courses and resources to assist districts in meeting the needs of language learners. In this presentation, participants will see how Idaho Digital Learning is building courses to help EL Students learn in an online environment. Participants will also learn of new professional development and support resources to help equip their districts with the tools needed to support the needs of their language learners.

Presenter Information: Jeff Simmons is the Director of Curriculum and Instruction for Idaho Digital Learning. Jeff has served as a teacher and administrator in the field of online learning since 2002. Prior to working full-time at IDLA, Jeff taught Social Studies and English at two different alternative high schools. He has a B.A. in Social Studies and English Education from Northwest Nazarene University and an M.A. in Education Leadership from the University of Idaho. Jeff lives in Nampa, Idaho with his wife and son, two dogs, one fat old grumpy cat, and one young crazy cat.

Session Description: Building positive relationships with challenging students can be tough. Building positive relationships with their parents can be even more difficult. In this 90-minute presentation, CWI’s EDUC professors will share tried and true techniques for success in a K12 classroom. Attendees will leave this session with at least 20 new strategies to build relationships with students and parents immediately. Join us for a fun, energetic and informative session that provides real-world practices you and your faculty can put to work instantly.

Conference Strand: Supporting Effective Instruction: Title II-A, Title I-A, Family and Community Engagement (FACE)Suggested Audience: Building Leadership, District Leadership, Paraprofessionals, Program Specific Staff, Teachers

Presenter Information: Carol Billing is an assistant professor in the Education department. She has been teaching at CWI since the Fall of 2010. Carol primarily instructs Foundations of Education, Field Experience and Families, Community & Culture courses. She also teaches the Connecting with Ideas (CWID) Gaming course. Prior to CWI, Carol taught technology, journalism and other elective courses in a small, rural high school in northern California. In addition to teaching, Carol is the president of the National Association of Community College Teachers Education Programs (NACCTEP).Carol received a BS in Journalism from Cal Poly, San Luis Obispo, as well as a Master’s in Education and an Administrative Credential from National University. She is credentialed to teach in California and Idaho public schools. Currently Carol is enrolled in the doctoral program researching online pedagogy at the University of Idaho.

Scott has a passion for helping students succeed in school. As the product of a community college himself, Scott firmly believes in the advantages to be gained by attending a community college. He enjoys being a part of the same system that gave him such an excellent start to his academic journey.

After receiving a BS in Geology from Richard Stockton State College in 1993, he began his professional career as a hydro-geologist in New Jersey. Scott obtained a Masters of Education from Gratz University, then began teaching high school and middle school reading, science and technology in the suburban town of Randolph, NJ. He is credentialed to teach K12 in NJ and California.

Scott created the Study Skills Academy in 2011, which is a program designed to help students succeed in school. He is currently working on a TV show "The Study Skills Academy" and writing a Study Skills book. He has already created a DVD program, Good Grades Fast, designed to help high school and college students not only survive, but thrive in school.

Scott moved from Pennsylvania to Idaho in 2006 and began teaching at CWI in Spring of 2009. He instructs College Study Methods, CISA and Education courses. When not on campus, Scott enjoys spending time with his family, playing competitive tennis, golfing, mountain biking and snowboarding.

Molly Wolk is a full time faculty member in the Education Department where she serves as a Master Teacher for the IDoTeach Program. This program is a replicate of the nationally recognized UTeach model which supports STEM majors’ discernment of the teaching profession. Molly has been instructing at CWI since Fall 2014, having formerly served as an adjunct faculty member in the Life Sciences Department. She now instructs Step 1: Inquiry Approaches to Teaching (EDUC 101), Step 2: Inquiry-Based Lesson Design (EDUC 102), as well as myriad Biology lectures and labs. In Fall 2015 Molly received the Faculty of the Month for November award for her work in implementing multiple teaching strategies to promote learning among students with a variety of different learning styles. Molly is also a Boise State Writing Project Fellow ’16-’17.

Molly is a Wisconsin import and proud Green Bay Packer fan, having moved to the Treasure Valley in 2010 to begin her teaching career in secondary science. She earned a Bachelor of Arts degree in Religious Studies from St. Norbert College in De Pere, WI as well as a Master of Science degree in Curriculum & Instruction from the University of Wisconsin - Milwaukee in Milwaukee, WI. Molly holds Secondary Biology teaching credentials in both Idaho and Wisconsin and her research interests include the Nature of Science, Evolution, and inquiry based STEM pedagogy.

Session Description: Adolescent newcomer English learners face a daunting challenge in negotiating the demands of College and Career Ready Standards and the language and literacy required to access them. Teachers are often in a bind as they search for content that is both appropriate for the grade-level content and the language and literacy skills of their students. This pendulum swings widely, as teachers must sacrifice accessibility for academic rigor, and vice versa. This is a vexing problem as students feel acute effects of content-light texts, or content-heavy texts that are too challenging to read.

In this age of new standards, text engineering offers a path for students to access complex concepts while simultaneously building their academic language and literacy skills. Teachers can build text sets around engaging and complex topics and themes with integrated scaffolds – each differentiated to the quantitative and qualitative literacy's of their students. Participants in this session will walk away with a clear sense of how to engineer texts to amplify their students’ access to rich content and the language and literacy skills they need for school success. Additionally, participants will connect to example tools that model the skills and processes for engineering text sets.

Presenter Information: Tim Blackburn spent the early years of his career as a high school ESL teacher and bilingual educator in the Bronx. In his final position in the New York City Department of Education Mr. Tim taught ESL and Global History at International Community High School, one of NYC’s 12 newcomer high schools. It was this experience that impressed the true importance of integrating language and content, and creating the space for meaning student collaboration. Tim is a Bi-literate educator in Spanish and English. He currently serves as a Senior Advisor at Education Northwest in Portland, Oregon.

Session Description: This session will focus on the benefits of a nature-based approach across domains of development. Nature-based learning has been linked to numerous positive outcomes, including (a) improved concentration, self-regulation, self-confidence and social relations, (b) enhanced cognitive abilities and academic performance, (c) improved physical fitness, gross motor development and nutrition, (d) reduced symptoms of attention-deficit/hyperactivity disorder, and (3) reduced stress and aggression (Cooper, 2015). The presenter will begin with a discussion of the benefits of connecting children with nature and an overview of how a nature-based social-emotional approach can form the center of a coherent, integrated early childhood curriculum. The remainder of the presentation will focus on how a nature-based approach supports social-emotional, cognitive, language and physical development of all learners.

Conference Strand: English Learners, McKinney Vento/Homeless, Migrant Education Program, Special Education (IDEA Part B), Supporting Effective Instruction: Title II-A, Title I-A, School Improvement, Family and Community Engagement (FACE), Neglected or Delinquent, Rural SchoolsSuggested Audience: Building Leadership, District Leadership, Paraprofessionals, Program Specific Staff, Teachers

Presenter Information: Deborah Carter, Ph.D., BCBA-D, is a professor in Early and Special Education at Boise State University. Dr. Carter's areas of expertise include social-emotional development, positive behavior support and environmental education in early childhood. Her current research and projects focus on implementation of program-wide positive behavior support and integrating social-emotional and environmental education practices in early childhood. Her work has been included in the Journal of Positive Behavior Interventions, Behavioral Disorders, Assessment for Effective Intervention, Intervention in School and Clinic, The Early Childhood Education Journal, Teaching Young Children, and the International Journal of Early Childhood Environmental Education.

Session Description: Participants will acquire knowledge, skills, and materials to implement the Grump Meter, a tool for emotional intelligence, self-regulation, preventing harmful behaviors, and promoting compassionate, empathic behaviors and communication. The Grump Meter is a cardboard five-colored ladder, a visual representation of mood, a mirror for feelings. Used by preschools, K-12 schools, mental health organizations, refugee centers, and community organizations, the Grump Meter reminds people to stay on blue (calm) and prevent the climb to red (explosive anger). Through the ease and comfort of a common language of color, children and adults alike use the tool to create safe and connected environments, strengthen learning, and build community.

Conference Strand: English Learners, McKinney Vento/Homeless, Migrant Education Program, Special Education (IDEA Part B), Supporting Effective Instruction: Title II-A, Title I-A, School Improvement, Family and Community Engagement (FACE), Neglected or Delinquent, Rural Schools, The Grump Meter has been successful with youth and adults of all ages, in all of the above populations.Suggested Audience: Building Leadership, District Leadership, Paraprofessionals, Program Specific Staff, Teachers

Presenter Information: Now teaching at BSU, Janet Kaufman served on the English faculty at the University of Utah from 1996-2015, where she directed the English Education program and developed a specialty in Children’s Literature. Her most recent publications include The Grump Meter: A Family Tool for Anger Control and The Grump Meter Workbook. For the last five years, Kaufman has led workshops, conference presentations, and conferred with residential treatment centers, refugee centers, community centers, hospitals, preschools, and K-12 schools to help youth, parents, teachers, school administrators, mental health professionals, and physicians use the Grump Meter to promote communication about feelings, more successful learning environments, family well-being and safety, and community-building.

Session Description: This session presents the utilization of a student’s spelling stage of development to inform differentiated reading instruction in the K- 6 classroom. The circle-seat-center classroom management model will be demonstrated to show how teachers can implement more effective and dynamic ways to teach language arts instruction.

Presenter Information: From 2006-2010, Dr. Patchen was an Assistant Professor at the University of North Texas. She has been a Literacy Consultant since 2011 and is currently Adjunct Faculty at Boise State University since 2015.

Session Description: Inclusive education not only describes meeting the individual needs of children with disabilities, it recognizes the use of instructional methods for a diverse group of learners. With more children with autism spectrum disorder educated within inclusive settings, the role of sensory processing on learning has gained the attention of teachers and researchers alike. Specifically, addressing sensory processing differences within the classroom has the potential to provide educational benefits for not only children with autism spectrum disorder, but could affect a wide range of learners. This is especially relevant to younger children whose sensory experiences and sensory exploration shape their early learning. Using an interactive approach and open discussion, this presentation will present original research that describes the complexity and benefits of addressing sensory regulation within an inclusive classroom setting for all learners including children with and without autism spectrum disorder.

Presenter Information: Yvette Mere-Cook, MSOT, Ed.D., is a Clinical Assistant Professor for the Department of Early and Special Education at Boise State University. Dr. Mere-Cook completed her doctoral degree within the field of Special Education at the University of San Francisco, drawing from her experiences as a school-based occupational therapist to inform her research interests. Her doctoral work focused on providing classroom based interventions for sensory regulation to support both students with and without disabilities within inclusive settings. At Boise State University, Dr. Mere-Cook's teaching focuses on foundational principles of early childhood education and development as well as collaboration with teachers and families within both early and special education. As part of an emerging partnership, Dr. Mere-Cook also serves as one of the liaisons between the College of Education and the Boise State University Children’s Center.

Session Description: To successfully advocate for ELs, educators must position themselves as leaders and form alliances to create positive change. This session focuses on developing leadership skills that you can leverage to extend your sphere of influence and benefit ELs in your school, district, and the state.

Session Description: Close the achievement gap by creating a personalized mastery based learning environment that increases: student efficacy, instructional time, on task learning, joy of learning, effective teacher contact time with students, student ownership of learning and positive parent communication. You will take away 5 fundamental principles giving you guidance for implementing in your building(s).

Conference Strand: English Learners, McKinney Vento/Homeless, Migrant Education Program, Special Education (IDEA Part B), Supporting Effective Instruction: Title II-A, Title I-A, School Improvement, Family and Community Engagement (FACE), Neglected or Delinquent, Rural SchoolsSuggested Audience: Building Leadership, District Leadership, Paraprofessionals, Program Specific Staff, Teachers

Presenter Information: Jeff Dillon was raised in Wilder, Idaho on a small farm, graduated in 1984 from Greenleaf Friends Academy, and earned his undergraduate degree in Behavioral Science from Northwest University. He has served many communities as a Pastor and Youth Pastor for 17 years. Following his passion for teaching, he returned to school and in 2001 received his Master’s in Teaching degree from Heritage University and taught Middle School Science and Reading in a Title 1 District. In 2007 he returned to his hometown as Elementary Principal and Title 1 Director for the Wilder School District. During his tenure as Elementary Principal, he has successfully turned around a targeted, failing, rural, 100% Free and Reduced Lunch, Schoolwide Title 1 School, increasing proficiency scores on the Idaho Student Achievement Test 60% in Reading, Mathematics and Language Usage in three years. His school was the recipient of the National Title 1 Association Distinguished School award in 2012, and the International Reading Associations’ Exemplary Reading Program in 2011. As a result of his successful leadership as the Elementary Principal, Jeff was hired to lead the Wilder School District as the district’s Superintendent of Schools in December of 2012, in addition to his K5 Principal role. His leadership is one of passion, character, team building, and creating a culture of success, with an intense focus for the success of every student and staff. Most recently, Mr. Dillon has successfully led his team to a partnership with the Apple Corporation in being identified as an Apple ConnectED school district.

This partnership has brought to the district a commercial upgrade in technology infrastructure, professional development for all staff, iPad’s for all students PreK12, and internal controls to support and monitor all devices 24/7. This increased technology infusion has allowed the district to lead the state in innovation, offering success for every student in providing a district wide personalized competency based education environment. In 2016 Mr. Dillon was invited to the White House for a conversation with Leading Districts in Innovations in Personalized Learning. In addition to his leadership within the district, Jeff is the Chairman for Idaho Association of School Administrators Legislative Priorities Committee; member of the AASA Personalized Learning Cohort; AASA Collaborative; AASA Rural Superintendents Steering Committee; Strategic Advisory Committee, BoardSavvy.

Superintendent; Co-owner of a consulting company, Rural American Resources for Education; Advisory Board member for a successful online education company, Learning A-Z; and is a national education leadership speaker.

Session Description: Applied Behavior Analysis is a systematic approach for evaluating and improving behavior. Practitioners and researchers in the field have identified and applied a variety of evidence-based interventions that can be implemented in the classroom to enhance student learning and engagement. During this session, participants will be guided through common classroom scenarios that pose difficulties for teachers, then the research findings and procedures for implementing improvement strategies will be presented and discussed.

Presenter Information: Amy Loukus is a practicing Board Certified Behavior Analyst and Statewide Behavioral Coordinator. She serves as a behavioral consultant in Idaho, Oregon, and Illinois, addressing the needs of a variety of populations, including adults, children, organizational staff, and teachers. Through her work, she focuses on providing comprehensive behavioral supports, education, developmental training, and crisis intervention to organizations, families, and individuals affected by intellectual and developmental disabilities and autism, and she hopes to expand awareness and the application of behavioral science throughout the state of Idaho.

Session Description: This session will review changes to federal educational protections for children and youth experiencing homelessness, from early childhood through higher education. Topics include eligibility, enrollment, school selection, extra-curricular activities, disputes, preschool, financial aid, and Title I Part A. Practical strategies and best practices will be discussed.

Conference Strand: McKinney Vento/HomelessSuggested Audience: Building Leadership, District Leadership, Program Specific Staff, Teachers, school district liaisons

Presenter Information: For more than twenty years, Barbara Duffield has bridged policy and practice in early care, education, housing, and homelessness. Barbara began her career as a tutor for children experiencing homelessness in Washington, D.C. She then served as Director of Policy and Programs at the National Association for the Education of Homeless Children and Youth in Washington, D.C. from 2003-2016, leading national efforts to strengthen federal protections and services for children and youth experiencing homelessness, from early childhood through higher education. Barbara was the Director of Education for the National Coalition for the Homeless from 1994-2003. She received her Bachelor’s degree summa cum laude in Political Science from the University of Michigan.

Presenter Information: Christine Fonner has taught and coached across the country including in the two largest districts in the country: New York City DOE and LA Unified SD. She has a love for literacy and instructional practices and has a strong background in ESL/Bilingual education at the elementary level. She has a systematic and practical approach to diving into student work and coming out with clear data that propels instruction. Christine is currently the principal at Syringa Mountain School in Hailey, ID.

Presenter Information: Dr. Smyer is a veteran educator of 39 years in Utah and Idaho. He was a classroom teacher for nearly 30 years in addition to serving as a building principal for 9 years. The past 10 years he has served as the Cassia School District Superintendent. He is a product of the Idaho system of public education graduating from Declo High School and obtaining advanced degrees through the University of Idaho. Cassia School District is comprised of 17 schools serving approximately 5500 in six communities with nearly 650 staff.

Session Description: Two secondary mathematics educators share classroom strategies for implementing academic language into K-12 mathematics content. Strategy descriptions, student examples, and hands on demonstrations and activities will be used. The goal of the presentation will be to show how powerful the partnership between language development and mathematics content can be for both ELs and non ELs.

Presenter Information: Meg Rowe and Whitney Danner have both been teaching math at South Junior High School for the last 5 years. Both women received their undergraduate degrees from Boise State, Whitney in Elementary Education and Meg in Secondary Mathematics. Together, Whitney and Meg earned their Master's Degrees through the Mathematics Consulting Teacher program from Boise State in December of 2015. At South Junior High, Whitney and Meg teach a diverse group of students, many of them refugees, with a wide range of language needs. Additionally, Whitney and Meg have both been a part of the EL co-teaching program established at South for the past 2 years.

Session Description: Are your students growing? Do they believe their abilities are limited or do they believe the sky is the limit? This session will provide a brief overview of Growth Mindset, and how this mindset can support student motivation, engagement, and growth. Participants will also be provided an opportunity to discuss application of the Growth Mindset within the classroom. Participants will brainstorm in small groups, and share back their ideas with the whole group.

Conference Strand: English Learners, McKinney Vento/Homeless, Migrant Education Program, Special Education (IDEA Part B), Supporting Effective Instruction: Title II-A, Title I-A, School Improvement, Family and Community Engagement (FACE), Neglected or Delinquent, Rural SchoolsSuggested Audience: Building Leadership, District Leadership, Paraprofessionals, Program Specific Staff, Teachers

Presenter Information: Jeff Simmons is the Director of Curriculum and Instruction for Idaho Digital Learning. Jeff has served as a teacher and administrator in the field of online learning since 2002. Prior to working full-time at IDLA, Jeff taught Social Studies and English at two different alternative high schools. He has a B.A. in Social Studies and English Education from Northwest Nazarene University and an M.A. in Education Leadership from the University of Idaho. Jeff lives in Nampa, Idaho with his wife and son, two dogs, one fat old grumpy cat, and one young crazy cat.

Session Description: This workshop supports practitioners in understanding the alignment between learning outcomes, formative and summative assessments. Participants will explore how to use data to inform instructional decisions to strengthen their practice based upon the Danielson Framework for Teaching.

“Effective instructional outcomes reflect important learning and lend themselves to the various forms of assessment through which all students will be able to demonstrate their understanding of the content.” Charlotte Danielson 2013 Framework for Teaching pg.21

Presenter Information: Joanie Peterson is a graduate of the University of California at Davis, whose 30 year career span includes classroom teacher, counselor, central office Human Resources and Professional Development administrator and Board of Trustee in the K-12 education system; faculty member, counselor and administrator at the community college and university level. Peterson specializes in recruitment and the hiring process, mentor and induction programs, instructional coaching and teacher evaluation based on the Danielson Framework for Teaching since 2001. Peterson as a Danielson Group consultant provides support in facilitating professional development on teacher effectiveness, data-driven decision making processes, observation, calibration, and teacher evaluation design using the Framework for Teaching.

Kathleen Hanson has spent 35 years in public service for Idaho’s school children, 19 years in the classroom and 16 years as administrator. She’s been directly involved with the Frameworks for Teaching; leading the development of a supervision and evaluation model in three school districts as Human Resources Administrator, principal, and consultant. She currently works as a consultant in the Frameworks for Teaching, Adaptive Schools, and as a Capacity Builder for Boise State University Center for School Improvement and Policy Studies.

Session Description: Adolescent newcomer English learners face a daunting challenge in negotiating the demands of College and Career Ready Standards and the language and literacy required to access them. Teachers are often in a bind as they search for content that is both appropriate for the grade-level content and the language and literacy skills of their students. This pendulum swings widely, as teachers must sacrifice accessibility for academic rigor, and vice versa. This is a vexing problem as students feel acute effects of content-light texts, or content-heavy texts that are too challenging to read.

In this age of new standards, text engineering offers a path for students to access complex concepts while simultaneously building their academic language and literacy skills. Teachers can build text sets around engaging and complex topics and themes with integrated scaffolds – each differentiated to the quantitative and qualitative literacy's of their students. Participants in this session will walk away with a clear sense of how to engineer texts to amplify their students’ access to rich content and the language and literacy skills they need for school success. Additionally, participants will connect to example tools that model the skills and processes for engineering text sets.

Presenter Information: Tim Blackburn spent the early years of his career as a high school ESL teacher and bilingual educator in the Bronx. In his final position in the New York City Department of Education Mr. Tim taught ESL and Global History at International Community High School, one of NYC’s 12 newcomer high schools. It was this experience that impressed the true importance of integrating language and content, and creating the space for meaning student collaboration. Tim is a Bi-literate educator in Spanish and English. He currently serves as a Senior Advisor at Education Northwest in Portland, Oregon.

Session Description: Improving outcomes for students, particularly students with disabilities, takes a comprehensive, coordinated effort of all invested stakeholders. The team committed to the development of the State Systemic Improvement Plan will share their work, challenges and successes, as they build a Results-Driven Accountability system to support students with disabilities in Idaho.

Conference Strand: Special Education (IDEA Part B), Supporting Effective Instruction: Title II-A, School Improvement, Family and Community Engagement (FACE)Suggested Audience: Building Leadership, District Leadership, Paraprofessionals, Program Specific Staff, Teachers

Presenter Information: Deborah Haley-Hughes was a special education teacher for 20 years, has a Master’s in Educational Leadership and is currently the Results-Driven Accountability Coordinator working closely with the ISDE Special Education Department. As the State Lead for the State Systemic Improvement Plan, her team is working closely with a cohort of seven districts to identify and implement the most effective plan for Idaho students.

Session Description: Evidence Based Practices (EBPs) should be used with all students, including students with disabilities. How do you know if your current practices are evidence based? Where do you find resources? Are there specific EBPs for literacy skills that will help my students with disabilities? This presentation will define evidenced based practices and provide practical resources special educators can use in the classroom.

Presenter Information: Mary Robinson has taught special education students in public schools for 23 years in settings from Resource to Extended Resource/Special Programs. She is currently working as an Instructional Coordinator for Idaho SESTA. She has a Master's Degree in Literacy and is currently pursuing an Educational Leadership degree through BSU.

Sue Shelton has been involved in special education in the state of Idaho for 33 years. She has held the positions of Speech-Language Pathologist, Special Education Director, Regional Consultant/Coordinator for the SDE, and Statewide Special Education Instructional Coordinator for Idaho SESTA.

Session Description: Acing the ACE’s builds on teachers and other practitioners’ knowledge and experience to address behavioral health issues and introduces and expands participants' understanding of the Adverse Childhood Experiences Study (ACES). The training focuses on five key areas:

The impact of toxic stress and trauma on a developing brain

The connection between ACES, brain development and behavior

Idaho ACES data

The Strengthening Families Protective Factors framework and

How to use everyday actions to promote Protective Factors in youth, families and each other

Presenter Information: Roger Sherman, BA, is the Executive Director of the Idaho Children’s Trust fund which is the state affiliate of Prevent child Abuse America. Since his hiring by the Trust Fund Board in 2007, Roger has worked to expand the Trust Fund’s work around strengthening families through building protective factors, prevention of child sexual abuse and shaken baby syndrome. Roger is on the board of directors of the National Alliance of Children’s Trust and Prevention Funds and is an adjunct instructor in the Social Work Department at Boise State. He is married and has three daughters.

Session Description: This workshop will discuss ways that paraprofessional staff can directly impact the success of EL and Migrant student populations in our schools. This workshop will examine; research, teacher experiences and recommendations from paraprofessional staff on effective ways to assist EL/Migrant students. We will also discuss how the school community can help define, guide, and mentor the work of our paraprofessional staff to impact the success of EL and Migrant students.

Presenter Information: Dr. Ernesto Ramírez Jr., is a builder of pedagogical spaces for the intellectual, emotional, social and cultural growth of all students. He leads the development, advising, teaching and supervision of the bilingually instructed (English/Spanish) early childhood degree program and has brought his leadership skills in bilingual curriculum development and instruction to students throughout his career. His priorities include the education of young children, the professional development of teachers, parent involvement, and academic support for children at all levels of their academic experience.

Session Description: Educators are constantly bombarded with new strategies to implement in their classrooms; however, those strategies often do not include direction on how to monitor their effectiveness. This session will present ideas for developing monitoring systems which measure behavior change following implementation of evidence-based strategies. Instruction will be provided on how to utilize monitoring systems as a means to adjust implemented strategies based on fidelity of implementation and effect on student behavior.

Presenter Information: Nate Lyon is a Board Certified Behavior Analyst who currently provides professional development and consultation for school personnel who work with students that engage in challenging behavior. Nate specializes in the assessment and treatment of challenging behavior and has built his experience through working with a variety of intellectual and developmental disabilities across a variety of settings.

Session Description: Socratic discussion addresses both Idaho Core Standards and the Charlotte Danielson Framework, creating a forum for student interaction and engagement at a distinguished level in the diversified classroom. Participants will gain resources, strategies, and scaffolding techniques for engaging all learners in rigorous academic discourse that incorporates critical reading, writing, thinking, and speaking skills.

Conference Strand: English Learners, McKinney Vento/Homeless, Migrant Education Program, Special Education (IDEA Part B), Supporting Effective Instruction: Title II-A, Title I-A, School Improvement, Family and Community Engagement (FACE), Neglected or Delinquent, Rural SchoolsSuggested Audience: Building Leadership, District Leadership, Paraprofessionals, Program Specific Staff, Teachers

Presenter Information: Wendie Muñoz, M. Ed. is an Idaho native who loves traveling, camping, hiking, kayaking, reading, and writing. She holds a bachelor's degree in secondary education from Idaho State University (with an English major/social science minor), an English as a Second Language (ESL) endorsement from San Diego University, and a Master of Education degree with an emphasis on literacy from Northwest Nazarene University. She has worked in education for the past 23+ years, and she currently teaches English and American History at Canyon Ridge High School. Wendie is also an active member of the Idaho Core Coaching Network and the Idaho Association of Bilingual Education.

Kim Allen, M. Ed. is originally from Salt Lake City, Utah and has lived in seven states and Mexico. She holds a bachelor's degree in secondary education from University of Utah (with an English major/Spanish minor) and a Master of Education degree from Boise State University. She is a former teacher of language arts and English as a Second Language (ESL), and she is currently serving her seventh year as an instructional coach at Canyon Ridge High School in the Twin Falls School District. Kim is also an active member of the Idaho Core Coaching Network.

Session Description: This session will provide an overview of Subtitle VII-B of the McKinney-Vento Homeless Assistance Act, as amended by the “Every Student Succeeds Act of 2015” (ESSA). Topics will cover eligibility, the role of liaisons, school selection, transportation, immediate enrollment, disputes, preschool, unaccompanied youth, and how Title I supports students experiencing homelessness. Other laws, such as IDEA, Higher Education, and Head Start also will be reviewed.

Conference Strand: McKinney Vento/HomelessSuggested Audience: Building Leadership, District Leadership, Program Specific Staff, Teachers, school district liaisons

Presenter Information: Barbara Duffield is a national expert on the education of children and youth experiencing homelessness. For more than twenty years, she has bridged policy and practice in early care, education, housing, and homelessness. Barbara began her career as a tutor for children experiencing homelessness in Washington DC. She then served as Director of Policy and Programs at the National Association for the Education of Homeless Children and Youth in Washington D.C from 2003-2016, leading national efforts to strengthen federal protections and services for children and youth experiencing homelessness, from early childhood through higher education. Barbara was the Director of Education for the National Coalition for the Homeless from 1994-2003, where she collaborated with service providers, educators, federal agencies, and Congressional offices to address children’s issues. She helped to establish and develop the NAEHCY Scholarship Program, a comprehensive scholarship program for youth who have experienced homelessness and wish to pursue higher education. Barbara has conducted technical assistance trainings, authored policy reports, appeared on television and radio shows, and has been quoted by various media outlets such as The New York Times and Education Week. Her academic work can be found in Educational Studies, Early Childhood Research Quarterly, and Families in Society: The Journal of Contemporary Social Services. Barbara has served on numerous commissions and advisory groups, including Sesame Street Workshop’s Trauma Initiative and the National Commission on Children and Disasters education group. She received her Bachelor’s degree summa cum laude in Political Science from the University of Michigan.

Session Description: Even English learners (ELs) with moderate to strong levels of English proficiency face particular challenges when learning argumentative writing. There are many approaches to strengthening students’ capacity to succeed with this challenging type of writing. Our session will provide specific instructional strategies to help ELs and other students strengthen their use of academic language and practice the key elements of text-based argumentative writing. Scaffolding for specific tasks and assignments will be modeled and discussed.

Presenter Information: Jacqueline Raphael is a professional development specialist in writing as well as the manager of Education Northwest's 6+1 Trait Writing program. She also serves as a school and system improvement specialist.

Rosie Santana is a professional development specialist in supporting English Language Learners and specializes in supporting system-level school improvement in literacy, English language development, and equity.

Session Description: The use of visual supports is a long accepted evidence-based practice for support students with autism. Visual supports are equally effective for scaffolding learning and promoting independence for students with multiple and severe disabilities. Participants in this session will learn practical ways to develop and implement visual supports for use in their developmental learning programs and extended resources classrooms. Visual supports covered in this session will include mini-schedules, daily schedules, instructional supports, and social/behavioral supports.

Presenter Information: Dr. Karren Streagle is in her fifth year as an Assistant Professor of Special Education at Idaho State University. She earned her Ph.D. in Special Education and Disability Policy from Virginia Commonwealth University. She was a special education teacher in Virginia for 12 years. She teaches courses in assessment, designing instruction, teaching students with multiple and severe disabilities, and language and communication, and supervises special education teacher candidates in multiple field experiences. Her research interests include alternate assessments based on alternate achievement standards for students with significant intellectual disabilities and implementing Universal Design for Learning in teacher preparation.

Session Description: The Interim Assessments for ELA/literacy and math provide an opportunity to obtain data tightly aligned to Idaho standards and the ISAT in ways we have never had before. For teachers, for the classroom, for students, these flexible assessments have been used across Idaho with much success. Participants will learn general information about the Interim Assessments, reporting features, data collected, and usage logistics.

Implementation will be discussed by a district administrator, a school administrator, and a classroom teacher. Find out what is working for them and how they integrate these assessments with other initiatives that inform teaching and learning during the school year, resulting in the best possible outcome for standards mastery.

Conference Strand: English Learners, Special Education (IDEA Part B), Supporting Effective Instruction: Title II-A, Title I-A, School Improvement, Integration of assessment/curriculum & instructionSuggested Audience: Building Leadership, District Leadership, Program Specific Staff, Teachers

Presenter Information: Nancy Thomas Price has been a career educator for 32 years. After teaching in Utah for sixteen years she came to Idaho and worked at both district and school levels in the Caldwell School District. Nancy is in her 9th year at the State Department of Education. She currently supports districts and schools as the Comprehensive Assessment Coordinator, and was the Response to Intervention Coordinator for 3 years. She oversees the summative ISAT, and aligned Interim Assessments, as well as the formative assessment process and the Digital Library. She received her undergraduate degree from the University of Utah in Special Education, and her Master’s Degree from Boise State in Curriculum and Instruction. Nancy has been invited to speak at the National Conference on Student Assessment the last three years on topics related to the integration of assessment as a critical component of teaching and learning.

Adam Johnson currently serves as Principal of Murtaugh Middle/High School as well as the district testing coordinator. He was a classroom teacher for eight years prior to entering administration. Adam has worked in the Challis, Minidoka, and Murtaugh School Districts. He holds a Bachelor of Arts degree from Boise State University in Secondary Education; History, a Master’s degree from the University of Idaho in Education Leadership, as well as an Education Specialist Degree in Education Leadership from the University of Idaho. Adam and his wife Rocio reside in Kimberly, Idaho.

Sue Darden is in her 27th year of teaching, and as a military spouse, she taught in five other states before settling back in Idaho. She currently teaches 6th grade math and World Civilizations at Galileo STEM Academy in the West Ada district. She received her undergraduate degree in Elementary Education from the University of Idaho, and her master’s in Curriculum and Instruction from Long Island University. Sue has served on several district and state math committees, and represented Idaho at two recent workshops held at UCLA on Developing Resources to Connect IAB Content to Digital Library Resources. She is a 2016 finalist for the Presidential Award for Excellence in Mathematics and Science teaching. Sue and her husband have two sons who are currently serving in the Army.

Kathy Luras currently serves as the Curriculum and Assessment Coordinator for the Pocatello/Chubbuck School District. She has taught Title I and Reading Recovery, served as a District Literacy Coach and taught the Idaho Comprehensive Literacy Course. She holds a Bachelor of Arts degree in Elementary Education and a Master’s degree in Education Leadership, both from Idaho State University

Session Description: Presentation will detail latest evidenced based programming and practices from around the country that are resulting in transition success for special education students ages 18-21. For districts that already have an 18-21 year-old program or those that are considering creating one.

Session Description: This session will expand upon each component within Response to Intervention (RTI) and detail steps for implementation. This session is most appropriate for schools and districts wishing to refine and strengthen their current framework for Response to Intervention. Participants should have basic knowledge of the components of RTI and be prepared to examine their current practices and produce an action plan to further their implementation of RTI.

Conference Strand: Supporting Effective Instruction: Title II-A, Title I-A, School ImprovementSuggested Audience: Building Leadership, District Leadership, Program Specific Staff, Teachers

Presenter Information: Alayna Gee is the RTI coordinator at the Idaho State Department of Education and director of the State Professional Development Grant (SPDG) focused on Implementing RTI within schools and district in Idaho. She has been in education for 15 years, 6 of which she worked directly with RTI and systems improvement in schools.

Session Description: In today's world we cannot expect students to sit still and learn. I will show you tools and websites that you can use to get your students moving both physically and mentally. The audience will be given the opportunity to interact with the websites and see how to utilize them in their programs/homes the very day they return.

Conference Strand: English Learners, Supporting Effective Instruction: Title II-A, Title I-A, School Improvement, Family and Community Engagement (FACE)Suggested Audience: Building Leadership, Paraprofessionals, Program Specific Staff, Teachers

Presenter Information: Ms. Arteaga has been educating the students in Cassia County for 17 years. She has done an exemplary job as a team leader, technology expert, and district liaison during her career. Her presentations have been well received at local professional developments and national conferences. Ms. Arteaga is a great instructor with an effective approach for students. She displays a caring manner and focuses on positive reinforcement. Ms. Arteaga attributes her success in the classroom to strong communication with parents.

Session Description: This workshop supports practitioners in understanding the alignment between learning outcomes, formative and summative assessments. Participants will explore how to use data to inform instructional decisions to strengthen their practice based upon the Danielson Framework for Teaching.

“Effective instructional outcomes reflect important learning and lend themselves to the various forms of assessment through which all students will be able to demonstrate their understanding of the content.” Charlotte Danielson 2013 Framework for Teaching pg.21

Presenter Information: Joanie Peterson is a graduate of the University of California at Davis, whose 30 year career span includes classroom teacher, counselor, central office Human Resources and Professional Development administrator and Board of Trustee in the K-12 education system; faculty member, counselor and administrator at the community college and university level. Peterson specializes in recruitment and the hiring process, mentor and induction programs, instructional coaching and teacher evaluation based on the Danielson Framework for Teaching since 2001. Peterson as a Danielson Group consultant provides support in facilitating professional development on teacher effectiveness, data-driven decision making processes, observation, calibration, and teacher evaluation design using the Framework for Teaching.

Kathleen Hanson has spent 35 years in public service for Idaho’s school children, 19 years in the classroom and 16 years as administrator. She’s been directly involved with the Frameworks for Teaching; leading the development of a supervision and evaluation model in three school districts as Human Resources Administrator, principal, and consultant. She currently works as a consultant in the Frameworks for Teaching, Adaptive Schools, and as a Capacity Builder for Boise State University Center for School Improvement and Policy Studies.

Session Description: Education Northwest recently developed a detailed guide to support the parents of English learner students in understanding their options, rights, and the ins and outs of programs. This session is a structured listening session designed to connect participants to a new tool for parents while providing an organized space for feedback to improve the tool.

Conference Strand: English Learners, Migrant Education Program, Family and Community Engagement (FACE)Suggested Audience: Building Leadership, District Leadership, Paraprofessionals, Program Specific Staff, Teachers

Presenter Information: Tim Blackburn spent the early years of his career as a high school ESL teacher and bilingual educator in the Bronx. In his final position in the New York City Department of Education Mr. Tim taught ESL and Global History at International Community High School, one of NYC’s 12 newcomer high schools. It was this experience that impressed the true importance of integrating language and content, and creating the space for meaning student collaboration. Tim is a Bi-literate educator in Spanish and English. He currently serves as a Senior Advisor at Education Northwest in Portland, Oregon.

Session Description: Attendees will hear from a high school teacher and STEM student about their use of a robot to engage students who have been diagnosed with Autism. The NNU Doceō Center, a local high school teacher and a student programmer have teamed up to use robotics to gain trust, understand emotions, and inspire students in their own school at a level not believed possible. Attendees will learn tips about how they could do this in their school. Also, learn how this project helped the student programmer learn more about coding and more about his fellow students.

Conference Strand: Special Education (IDEA Part B), Title I-ASuggested Audience: Building Leadership, Program Specific Staff, Teachers

Presenter Information: Tim BlackburnEric Kellerer is currently the Director of the Doceō Center and the Director of International Relations at Northwest Nazarene University. The Center, established in January, 2013 exists to inspire personalized learning through innovative practices in education. The Center is responsible for the development of the H.A.C.K. Model for Innovative Instruction. He is currently involved in education reform movements in Liberia and China. He has established relationships with universities and high schools in China, Korea, and Liberia.

Session Description: This session will provide guidance to the Evaluation Team when collaborating with the Problem-Solving Team in gathering the evidence needed to make an eligibility determination under the category of Specific Learning Disability. It will cover the steps that a Problem-Solving Team might take when determining whether or not to move forward with a Referral to Consider a Special Education Evaluation, team member roles and responsibilities within this process, and tips on communicating these expectations with the Problem-Solving Team.

Conference Strand: Special Education (IDEA Part B)Suggested Audience: Building Leadership, District Leadership, Teachers

Presenter Information: Nichole Kristensen is an Instructional Coordinator for Idaho SESTA. Over the course of her career she has worked as a special education teacher within resource and extended resource classrooms and has been a mentor to new special education teachers. She now provides support and technical assistance to school districts in Idaho and is currently pursuing a degree in Educational Leadership.

Session Description: Acing the ACE’s builds on teachers and other practitioners’ knowledge and experience to address behavioral health issues and introduces and expands participants' understanding of the Adverse Childhood Experiences Study (ACES). The training focuses on five key areas:

The impact of toxic stress and trauma on a developing brain

The connection between ACES, brain development and behavior

Idaho ACES data

The Strengthening Families Protective Factors framework and

How to use everyday actions to promote Protective Factors in youth, families and each other

Presenter Information: Roger Sherman, BA, is the Executive Director of the Idaho Children’s Trust fund which is the state affiliate of Prevent child Abuse America. Since his hiring by the Trust Fund Board in 2007, Roger has worked to expand the Trust Fund’s work around strengthening families through building protective factors, prevention of child sexual abuse and shaken baby syndrome. Roger is on the board of directors of the National Alliance of Children’s Trust and Prevention Funds and is an adjunct instructor in the Social Work Department at Boise State. He is married and has three daughters.

Session Description: Where do we start? Well, to begin, Washington State has implemented a process that every MEP project school district develop their own comprehensive ID&R plan. In this session, MSDRS (Migrant Student Data, Recruitment and Support) will demonstrate how we meet recruitment requirements by strategically planning ID&R in a seasonal and monthly basis.

Presenter Information: Eric Garza has spent more than 19 years working with the migrant seasonal farmworker population. In 2010, Eric brought his experience and training expertise to the Washington State Migrant Education Program when he joined the Washington State Migrant Student Data, Recruitment and Support team as the state Identification and Recruitment (ID&R) Trainer.

Eric’s primary focus is to conduct statewide trainings in all aspects of ID&R in order for migrant recruiters and other MEP staff to effectively identify and recruit all eligible migrant children residing in Washington State. Eric does this by maintaining a strong communication and dissemination network, focusing on state recruitment strategies and best practices. He utilizes current technology for clarification on various types of qualifying moves and scenarios through his weekly emails and videoconference trainings to groups or individuals. He takes an active approach to onsite, state and national trainings/presentations. He also develops training materials and conducts quality control by reviewing and approving all incoming state COEs.

Session Description: Unaccompanied youth experiencing homelessness are, by definition, making their way through life and their educational careers without a parent or guardian to turn to legally or for support. This session will provide information on legal rights and resources, including the McKinney-Vento Act and the Higher Education Act. Best practices in identifying and supporting youth, inside and outside school, will be shared.

Conference Strand: McKinney Vento/Homeless, Title I-ASuggested Audience: Building Leadership, District Leadership, Program Specific Staff, Teachers, school district liaisons

Presenter Information: Barbara Duffield is a national expert on the education of children and youth experiencing homelessness. For more than twenty years, she has bridged policy and practice in early care, education, housing, and homelessness. Barbara began her career as a tutor for children experiencing homelessness in Washington DC. She then served as Director of Policy and Programs at the National Association for the Education of Homeless Children and Youth in Washington D.C from 2003-2016, leading national efforts to strengthen federal protections and services for children and youth experiencing homelessness, from early childhood through higher education. Barbara was the Director of Education for the National Coalition for the Homeless from 1994-2003, where she collaborated with service providers, educators, federal agencies, and Congressional offices to address children’s issues. She helped to establish and develop the NAEHCY Scholarship Program, a comprehensive scholarship program for youth who have experienced homelessness and wish to pursue higher education. Barbara has conducted technical assistance trainings, authored policy reports, appeared on television and radio shows, and has been quoted by various media outlets such as The New York Times and Education Week. Her academic work can be found in Educational Studies, Early Childhood Research Quarterly, and Families in Society: The Journal of Contemporary Social Services. Barbara has served on numerous commissions and advisory groups, including Sesame Street Workshop’s Trauma Initiative and the National Commission on Children and Disasters education group. She received her Bachelor’s degree summa cum laude in Political Science from the University of Michigan.

Session Description: New evidence-based recommendations for improving middle and high school students’ writing were just published by the Institute for Education Sciences. The recommendations focused on three general strategies that can be implemented in a variety of ways across content areas in secondary schools: explicit strategy instruction, integration of reading and writing, and use of formative assessments to inform instruction. To help busy educators and leaders implement these broad recommendations, this session will focus on a straightforward approach to combining these powerful strategies to strengthen student writing across disciplines. Examples and modeling will be provided, as well as implementation suggestions for building and district leaders.

Presenter Information: Jacqueline Raphael is a professional development specialist in writing and also serves as the manager of the 6+1 Trait Writing program at Education Northwest. She has taught writing at the secondary and postsecondary levels and works with college faculty on ways to strengthen the alignment of curriculum and instruction across sectors. She also specializes in providing assistance in school and district improvement, particularly when it is tied to the achievement of teaching and learning goals in core subjects such as writing.

Session Description: The Interim Assessments for ELA/literacy and math provide an opportunity to obtain data tightly aligned to Idaho standards and the ISAT in ways we have never had before. For teachers, for the classroom, for students, these flexible assessments have been used across Idaho with much success. Participants will learn general information about the Interim Assessments, reporting features, data collected, and usage logistics.

Implementation will be discussed by a district administrator, a school administrator, and a classroom teacher. Find out what is working for them and how they integrate these assessments with other initiatives that inform teaching and learning during the school year, resulting in the best possible outcome for standards mastery.

Conference Strand: English Learners, Special Education (IDEA Part B), Supporting Effective Instruction: Title II-A, Title I-A, School Improvement, Integration of assessment/curriculum & instructionSuggested Audience: Building Leadership, District Leadership, Program Specific Staff, Teachers

Presenter Information: Nancy Thomas Price has been a career educator for 32 years. After teaching in Utah for sixteen years she came to Idaho and worked at both district and school levels in the Caldwell School District. Nancy is in her 9th year at the State Department of Education. She currently supports districts and schools as the Comprehensive Assessment Coordinator, and was the Response to Intervention Coordinator for 3 years. She oversees the summative ISAT, and aligned Interim Assessments, as well as the formative assessment process and the Digital Library. She received her undergraduate degree from the University of Utah in Special Education, and her Master’s Degree from Boise State in Curriculum and Instruction. Nancy has been invited to speak at the National Conference on Student Assessment the last three years on topics related to the integration of assessment as a critical component of teaching and learning.

Adam Johnson currently serves as Principal of Murtaugh Middle/High School as well as the district testing coordinator. He was a classroom teacher for eight years prior to entering administration. Adam has worked in the Challis, Minidoka, and Murtaugh School Districts. He holds a Bachelor of Arts degree from Boise State University in Secondary Education; History, a Master’s degree from the University of Idaho in Education Leadership, as well as an Education Specialist Degree in Education Leadership from the University of Idaho. Adam and his wife Rocio reside in Kimberly, Idaho.

Sue Darden is in her 27th year of teaching, and as a military spouse, she taught in five other states before settling back in Idaho. She currently teaches 6th grade math and World Civilizations at Galileo STEM Academy in the West Ada district. She received her undergraduate degree in Elementary Education from the University of Idaho, and her master’s in Curriculum and Instruction from Long Island University. Sue has served on several district and state math committees, and represented Idaho at two recent workshops held at UCLA on Developing Resources to Connect IAB Content to Digital Library Resources. She is a 2016 finalist for the Presidential Award for Excellence in Mathematics and Science teaching. Sue and her husband have two sons who are currently serving in the Army.

Kathy Luras currently serves as the Curriculum and Assessment Coordinator for the Pocatello/Chubbuck School District. She has taught Title I and Reading Recovery, served as a District Literacy Coach and taught the Idaho Comprehensive Literacy Course. She holds a Bachelor of Arts degree in Elementary Education and a Master’s degree in Education Leadership, both from Idaho State University

Session Description: Socratic discussion addresses both Idaho Core Standards and the Charlotte Danielson Framework, creating a forum for student interaction and engagement at a distinguished level in the diversified classroom. Participants will gain resources, strategies, and scaffolding techniques for engaging all learners in rigorous academic discourse that incorporates critical reading, writing, thinking, and speaking skills.

Conference Strand: English Learners, McKinney Vento/Homeless, Migrant Education Program, Special Education (IDEA Part B), Supporting Effective Instruction: Title II-A, Title I-A, School Improvement, Family and Community Engagement (FACE), Neglected or Delinquent, Rural SchoolsSuggested Audience: Building Leadership, District Leadership, Paraprofessionals, Program Specific Staff, Teachers

Presenter Information: Wendie Muñoz, M. Ed. is an Idaho native who loves traveling, camping, hiking, kayaking, reading, and writing. She holds a bachelor's degree in secondary education from Idaho State University (with an English major/social science minor), an English as a Second Language (ESL) endorsement from San Diego University, and a Master of Education degree with an emphasis on literacy from Northwest Nazarene University. She has worked in education for the past 23+ years, and she currently teaches English and American History at Canyon Ridge High School. Wendie is also an active member of the Idaho Core Coaching Network and the Idaho Association of Bilingual Education.

Kim Allen, M. Ed. is originally from Salt Lake City, Utah and has lived in seven states and Mexico. She holds a bachelor's degree in secondary education from University of Utah (with an English major/Spanish minor) and a Master of Education degree from Boise State University. She is a former teacher of language arts and English as a Second Language (ESL), and she is currently serving her seventh year as an instructional coach at Canyon Ridge High School in the Twin Falls School District. Kim is also an active member of the Idaho Core Coaching Network.

Session Description: Can you find your district data on the web? This session is going to be an interactive look at the data available to each district and where to find it. Do you want to know how your district compared to the state targets on the Annual Performance Report? Are you looking for child count information? Would you like to know what disability totals look like at the State level? If you would like to get hands-on training on where to find the information you can use to effect change in your district, then you will want to attend this interactive session.

Conference Strand: Special Education (IDEA Part B)Suggested Audience: Building Leadership, District Leadership, Program Specific Staff, Teachers

Presenter Information: Ivana Hotchkiss is the Data Coordinator for the Idaho State Department of Education, Special Education Program.

Session Description: Under the new ESSA legislation, states are required to create and uniformly implement standardized entrance and exit criteria for English Learners. ESSA also moves EL accountability to Title I. New statewide requirements affect all Idaho school districts, even those not reporting as have EL student currently. Come learn about the changes being implemented for EL programs across the state for school year 2017-2018. There are lots of changes happening, so this session will be great for new and veteran EL staff and administration. Topics will include Idaho's standardized entrance/exit criteria, EL accountability under Title I, and plenty of time for questions as our state implements ESSA requirements for English learners.

Presenter Information: Alissa works as the Idaho State EL and Title III Coordinator. Prior to coming to the SDE EL, Title III, and Migrant Department, she worked for 11 years as the ELL Teacher and District Program Coordinator for the Bismarck Public School District in North Dakota. While there, she served on several committees for the North Dakota Department of Public Instruction providing statewide support and professional development to teachers of English Learners. Her educational background includes a degree in elementary education and EL endorsement from the University of North Dakota, a Master’s degree in Reading Education from the University of Mary, and is currently writing her dissertation for her PhD in Teaching and Learning through the University of North Dakota.

Presenter Information: Stan Steiner has taught in the public schools and at Boise State University for his entire career. His expertise includes multicultural literature for youth, reading motivation, using literature across the disciplines and social conscious literature. He has authored more than 80 articles and 5 books on literature related topics. He has also served on the following youth book award committees: Children's, Young Adult, and Teacher's Choices in Literature Awards, Pura Belpré Award for Latino writers and illustrators of children's books, Notable Books for a Global Society Award and the prestigious John A. Newbery Award for the most distinguished children's book.

Session Description: Building positive relationships with challenging students can be tough. Building positive relationships with their parents can be even more difficult. In this 90-minute presentation, CWI’s EDUC professors will share tried and true techniques for success in a K12 classroom. Attendees will leave this session with at least 20 new strategies to build relationships with students and parents immediately. Join us for a fun, energetic and informative session that provides real-world practices you and your faculty can put to work instantly.

Conference Strand: Supporting Effective Instruction: Title II-A, Title I-A, Family and Community Engagement (FACE)Suggested Audience: Building Leadership, District Leadership, Paraprofessionals, Program Specific Staff, Teachers

Presenter Information: Carol Billing is an assistant professor in the Education department. She has been teaching at CWI since the Fall of 2010. Carol primarily instructs Foundations of Education, Field Experience and Families, Community & Culture courses. She also teaches the Connecting with Ideas (CWID) Gaming course. Prior to CWI, Carol taught technology, journalism and other elective courses in a small, rural high school in northern California. In addition to teaching, Carol is the president of the National Association of Community College Teachers Education Programs (NACCTEP).Carol received a BS in Journalism from Cal Poly, San Luis Obispo, as well as a Master’s in Education and an Administrative Credential from National University. She is credentialed to teach in California and Idaho public schools. Currently Carol is enrolled in the doctoral program researching online pedagogy at the University of Idaho.

Scott has a passion for helping students succeed in school. As the product of a community college himself, Scott firmly believes in the advantages to be gained by attending a community college. He enjoys being a part of the same system that gave him such an excellent start to his academic journey.

After receiving a BS in Geology from Richard Stockton State College in 1993, he began his professional career as a hydro-geologist in New Jersey. Scott obtained a Masters of Education from Gratz University, then began teaching high school and middle school reading, science and technology in the suburban town of Randolph, NJ. He is credentialed to teach K12 in NJ and California.

Scott created the Study Skills Academy in 2011, which is a program designed to help students succeed in school. He is currently working on a TV show "The Study Skills Academy" and writing a Study Skills book. He has already created a DVD program, Good Grades Fast, designed to help high school and college students not only survive, but thrive in school.

Scott moved from Pennsylvania to Idaho in 2006 and began teaching at CWI in Spring of 2009. He instructs College Study Methods, CISA and Education courses. When not on campus, Scott enjoys spending time with his family, playing competitive tennis, golfing, mountain biking and snowboarding.

Molly Wolk is a full time faculty member in the Education Department where she serves as a Master Teacher for the IDoTeach Program. This program is a replicate of the nationally recognized UTeach model which supports STEM majors’ discernment of the teaching profession. Molly has been instructing at CWI since Fall 2014, having formerly served as an adjunct faculty member in the Life Sciences Department. She now instructs Step 1: Inquiry Approaches to Teaching (EDUC 101), Step 2: Inquiry-Based Lesson Design (EDUC 102), as well as myriad Biology lectures and labs. In Fall 2015 Molly received the Faculty of the Month for November award for her work in implementing multiple teaching strategies to promote learning among students with a variety of different learning styles. Molly is also a Boise State Writing Project Fellow ’16-’17.

Molly is a Wisconsin import and proud Green Bay Packer fan, having moved to the Treasure Valley in 2010 to begin her teaching career in secondary science. She earned a Bachelor of Arts degree in Religious Studies from St. Norbert College in De Pere, WI as well as a Master of Science degree in Curriculum & Instruction from the University of Wisconsin - Milwaukee in Milwaukee, WI. Molly holds Secondary Biology teaching credentials in both Idaho and Wisconsin and her research interests include the Nature of Science, Evolution, and inquiry based STEM pedagogy.

Session Description: Learn how Pocatello Community Charter School uses Expeditionary Learning (EL) Education to inspire teachers and students to do more than they may have thought possible.

PCCS implements the Expeditionary Learning (EL) Education model of comprehensive school reform. Expeditionary Learning is a network of schools that emphasize active learning, literacy, character growth and teamwork. As an EL Education school, we teach reading, writing, science, math, and social studies through a challenging set of connected, real-world projects called learning expeditions. Expeditions call upon both students and teachers to collaborate, revise work through multiple drafts, achieve our personal best, and reflect upon what we have learned. Some of the learning expeditions that our school has embarked upon include a fifth and sixth grade study of water quality, a seventh and eighth grade study of Nordic Mythology, and a third and fourth grade study of the geology of Yellowstone Park.

Our charter requires us to respond to the individual academic needs of students while the EL Education core practice benchmarks require us to teach students how to work effectively in teams. Since the school’s model is “We are crew, not passengers,” teachers are compelled to design learning experiences that encourage students to share their thinking with others, work as a team, and take on academic challenges which may be out of their comfort zone. PCCS students set goals based on habits of work and learning (HOWL goals) for the year at a Personal Education Plan (PEP) conference in the fall. Parents and teachers provide input, but it is the student who must recognize his/her own strengths and weaknesses and use this knowledge to set annual individual goals.

Presenter Information: Michael Mendive has been the Director of Pocatello Community Charter School for 4 years. Before serving as director he taught 6 years in a Schoolwide Title I program in American Falls as a GLAD trained teacher.

Session Description: Combining Response to Intervention (RTI) and Positive Behavioral Interventions and Supports (PBIS) to make a Multi-Tiered Support System (MTSS) can improve your school and provide the needed support for all students. Utilizing Milepost or other data management systems will increase the efficiency and effectiveness of the process. We have resources, examples, and experience to help you develop a system that works for your situation. We would like to allow time for building teams to work on developing their own system so building leadership or intervention teams are encouraged to come together as an opportunity to brainstorm, develop, and plan.

Presenter Information: Sara and Nate are both Instructional Coaches and PBIS Coaches at the middle schools of Twin Falls School District. Each have Master's degrees in curriculum and instruction and have experience implementing and maintaining an MTSS model while utilizing Milepost and other data management systems.

Session Description: There are many opportunities for students regarding college and career readiness. Idaho Digital Learning will share different resources available to assist schools in establishing and supporting college and career activities. Participants will become familiar with the different pathways for students on an academic or technical route. They will learn how beginning advanced opportunities early will allow students to graduate not only with a high school diploma, but with the option of additional credits toward college. Additionally, participants will learn about the professional development opportunities available for counselors, teachers and administrators.

Conference Strand: Supporting Effective Instruction: Title II-A, Title I-A, School Improvement, Family and Community Engagement (FACE), Rural SchoolsSuggested Audience: Building Leadership, District Leadership, Paraprofessionals, Teachers

Presenter Information: Dr. Sherawn Reberry is currently the Director of Education Programs at Idaho Digital Learning Academy. IDLA is Idaho’s Virtual School established by the Idaho Legislature in 2002. Reberry is an experienced building level principal and assistant superintendent. Additionally, she continues her duties as online principal for IDLA as she has the previous eight years. Reberry received her Doctorate in Education (EdD) in 2002 in Educational Leadership with emphasis in Instructional Technology.

Presenter Information: Dr. Smyer is a veteran educator of 39 years in Utah and Idaho. He was a classroom teacher for nearly 30 years in addition to serving as a building principal for 9 years. The past 10 years he has served as the Cassia School District Superintendent. He is a product of the Idaho system of public education graduating from Declo High School and obtaining advanced degrees through the University of Idaho. Cassia School District is comprised of 17 schools serving approximately 5500 in six communities with nearly 650 staff.

Presenter Information: Dawn Spurlock is an Instructional Coordinator for Idaho SESTA. Over her 18 years in the Special Education field, she has taught in a variety of settings from extended resource programs to co-taught classrooms, and at the elementary, middle, and high school levels. She has also worked as an Itinerant Specialist for the Clark County School District in Nevada, where her role included providing ABA and curriculum training and supporting teachers and staff who worked in programs for students with Autism Spectrum Disorder.

Session Description: Helen Keller once said, "Alone we can do so little; together we can do so much." Building the capacity of families and communities through a shared vision is the premise behind this session. In this presentation, attendees will see a framework for including families and community members as partners. In addition, participants will examine how one district builds capacity by linking families and community partners to district and school programs. The trainer will invite participants to engage in discussion on current programs and provide a framework that could potentially guide future Family Engagement programs.

Conference Strand: English Learners, Migrant Education Program, Title I-A, Family and Community Engagement (FACE)Suggested Audience: Building Leadership, District Leadership, Paraprofessionals, Program Specific Staff, Teachers

Presenter Information: Dr. Oliva is currently the Federal Programs Coordinator for West Ada School District located in Meridian, Idaho. Beyond her administration duties for both Title I and Title III programs, Dr. Oliva focusses on bridging educational and cultural understandings between home and school. Dr. Oliva oversees several family engagement committees and family literacy programs through her position at the school district. In addition, she provides training for teachers and administrators on the issues of cultural diversity and proficiency as an adjunct for local universities. Her experience includes teaching in a broad range of general education classrooms from first to ninth grades, teaching as an EL Specialist with attention to refugee populations, working as an intervention specialist, and assisting in the administration of English Language and Title I programs at the district level.

Session Description: Teachers will learn to apply "choose-your-own-adventure" story structure to narrative fiction or nonfiction writing. Using Google Drive, teachers will learn to link story pages to form narratives with alternate endings. Tackle narrative writing and technology standards head-on and have fun at the same time. This session is a perfect fit for classroom teachers grades 4-12 who need strategies for teaching narrative writing. Any teacher with EL students or students who struggle with reading or writing will benefit from this session because the Choose-Your-Own-Adventure world is engaging for all.

Presenter Information: Amy Ballard teaches 9-12 English and Creative Writing at Camas County High School in Fairfield, Idaho. Her writing has been published in Open Spaces Quarterly, Words-Myth, Bead & Button, and Idaho Magazine. In her second year of the Core Teacher Network, she loves connecting with other Idaho teachers.

Session Description: This session will proceed step by step through goal building and progress reporting requirements using the AdvancED protocol. Participants will see samples and learn how to transition goals from general Strategic Plans and WISE Plans into the detailed AdvancED Continuous Improvement Plan. Participants will learn how to write specific goals that will result in an effective plan that includes strategies, interventions and monitoring to yield positive results. Learn how the AdvancED goal and plan building protocol naturally gets the entire staff engaged in the continuous improvement process. This session is designed to provide specific, actionable assistance that meets and exceeds annual continuous improvement reporting requirements outlined in Idaho Code 33-320 and House Bill 560.

Presenter Information: Dale Kleinert serves as the Idaho Director of AdvancED. His work is focused on assisting all 305 Idaho accredited institutions with their continuous improvement planning efforts using the AdvancED protocol to help institutions stay accredited. He previously served for 31 years in the Moscow, Idaho School District as a teacher, Assistant Principal, Principal and Superintendent. While serving as an administrator, he was closely involved in all forms of curriculum, strategic planning and continuous school improvement efforts.

Session Description: This session is designed for paraprofessionals who deliver reading instruction. The “big ideas,” along with strategies and techniques for increasing student achievement and engagement, will be presented in the areas of phonemic awareness, phonics, fluency, vocabulary and comprehension. Management tips and techniques will also be shared.

Presenter Information: Anna Maderis, M.A., works in the Professional Development Department at Lee Pesky Learning Center, a non-profit dedicated to improving the lives of people with learning disabilities through prevention, evaluation, treatment and research. With over 36 years of experience in the field of education in grades kindergarten through the college level, Anna provides instructional guidance, support, and training to school districts, organizations, and educators across the state. She has a Master’s degree in the Arts of Teaching and a Bachelor of Arts degree in Education.

Session Description: This session will provide guidance to the Evaluation Team when collaborating with the Problem-Solving Team in gathering the evidence needed to make an eligibility determination under the category of Specific Learning Disability. It will cover the steps that a Problem-Solving Team might take when determining whether or not to move forward with a Referral to Consider a Special Education Evaluation, team member roles and responsibilities within this process, and tips on communicating these expectations with the Problem-Solving Team.

Conference Strand: Special Education (IDEA Part B)Suggested Audience: Building Leadership, District Leadership, Teachers

Presenter Information: Nichole Kristensen is an Instructional Coordinator for Idaho SESTA. Over the course of her career she has worked as a special education teacher within resource and extended resource classrooms and has been a mentor to new special education teachers. She now provides support and technical assistance to school districts in Idaho and is currently pursuing a degree in Educational Leadership.

Session Description: This workshop will focus on instructional strategies for supporting academic success for diverse students. Participants will be exposed to a series of language protocols they can use to model academic language in the classroom as well as methods to scaffold and promote students’ language development. In addition, teachers will learn techniques for engaging students in classroom discussions using subject matter academic language.

Session Description: This presentation aims at serving our migrant families and to help keep the students on course to graduate from high school. We will discuss migrant students achieving success through mentoring, high-quality and comprehensive educational programs. Migrant Graduation Specialists will receive ideas and goals for helping them complete high school and pursue post-secondary opportunities.

Session Description: Students with disabilities often have limited opportunities to have enriching social experiences with their peers, especially in middle and high school environments. Participants will learn how to set up opportunities for students with disabilities or under-developed social skills to have meaningful social interaction with their non-disabled peers. PALS (Peers at Lunch Supports) provide trained peer partners at lunch and other less-structured locations in high schools.

Conference Strand: Special Education (IDEA Part B)Suggested Audience: Building Leadership, District Leadership, Teachers

Presenter Information: Andrea Cox is a Behavioral Coordinator with Idaho Special Education Supports and Technical Assistance (Idaho SESTA). She has extensive experience working with students with disabilities from preschool age through transition in high school. She specializes in working with individuals with autism spectrum disorders and other low incidence disabilities.

Session Description: Applied Behavior Analysis is a systematic approach for evaluating and improving behavior. Practitioners and researchers in the field have identified and applied a variety of evidence-based interventions that can be implemented in the classroom to enhance student learning and engagement. During this session, participants will be guided through common classroom scenarios that pose difficulties for teachers, then the research findings and procedures for implementing improvement strategies will be presented and discussed.

Presenter Information: Amy Loukus is a practicing Board Certified Behavior Analyst and Statewide Behavioral Coordinator. She serves as a behavioral consultant in Idaho, Oregon, and Illinois, addressing the needs of a variety of populations, including adults, children, organizational staff, and teachers. Through her work, she focuses on providing comprehensive behavioral supports, education, developmental training, and crisis intervention to organizations, families, and individuals affected by intellectual and developmental disabilities and autism, and she hopes to expand awareness and the application of behavioral science throughout the state of Idaho.

Presenter Information: Stan Steiner has taught in the public schools and at Boise State University for his entire career. His expertise includes multicultural literature for youth, reading motivation, using literature across the disciplines and social conscious literature. He has authored more than 80 articles and 5 books on literature related topics. He has also served on the following youth book award committees: Children's, Young Adult, and Teacher's Choices in Literature Awards, Pura Belpré Award for Latino writers and illustrators of children's books, Notable Books for a Global Society Award and the prestigious John A. Newbery Award for the most distinguished children's book.

Session Description: Are your students growing? Do they believe their abilities are limited or do they believe the sky is the limit? This session will provide a brief overview of Growth Mindset, and how this mindset can support student motivation, engagement, and growth. Participants will also be provided an opportunity to discuss application of the Growth Mindset within the classroom. Participants will brainstorm in small groups, and share back their ideas with the whole group.

Conference Strand: English Learners, McKinney Vento/Homeless, Migrant Education Program, Special Education (IDEA Part B), Supporting Effective Instruction: Title II-A, Title I-A, School Improvement, Family and Community Engagement (FACE), Neglected or Delinquent, Rural SchoolsSuggested Audience: Building Leadership, District Leadership, Paraprofessionals, Program Specific Staff, Teachers

Presenter Information: Jeff Simmons is the Director of Curriculum and Instruction for Idaho Digital Learning. Jeff has served as a teacher and administrator in the field of online learning since 2002. Prior to working full-time at IDLA, Jeff taught Social Studies and English at two different alternative high schools. He has a B.A. in Social Studies and English Education from Northwest Nazarene University and an M.A. in Education Leadership from the University of Idaho. Jeff lives in Nampa, Idaho with his wife and son, two dogs, one fat old grumpy cat, and one young crazy cat.

Session Description: SIOP is an effective, comprehensible, and engaging instructional model for lesson planning and delivery, both for ELL teachers and for teachers of all content areas. It serves as a guide for developing a culturally relevant pedagogy in classrooms. The model’s use of content and language objectives connects the need for students to learn academic vocabulary as well as specific content area, essential for academic success.

Presenter Information: Dr. Aileen Hale, Director and faculty of Curriculum, Instruction, and Innovation at NNU, has been training teachers with SIOP methods since 2006. She began teacher trainings as a faculty member of Bilingual Education at Boise State University. She supervised student teachers’ implementation of the SIOP model in the Boise and Nampa school districts. As a Fulbright Scholar, Dr. Hale subsequently trained teachers and faculty from education, science and history departments at the University of Belize. Having acquired fluency in Spanish and several other languages, she is passionate about empowering teachers with methods to increase student success from all linguistic and cultural backgrounds.

Dr. Jennifer Hill, Secondary Education Coordinator at NNU, has been officially working with non-native English speaking students since 1999 in her roles as a secondary English Language Arts teacher and school counselor, in both Idaho and South Korea. She currently trains all secondary education candidates at NNU in SIOP principles and helps student teachers integrate best practices for working with ELs into their classrooms.

Session Description: Our presentation will include information about how to prepare teachers and students for inclusion. There will be information about peer tutoring and peer tutor training to increase independence in academic and social settings. There will be information about grading rubrics for students in academic classes with modified/accommodated curriculum and class work. Example materials will be provided.

Conference Strand: Special Education (IDEA Part B), School ImprovementSuggested Audience: Building Leadership, District Leadership, Paraprofessionals, Program Specific Staff, Teachers

Presenter Information: Carolyn Bender has been teaching Special Education for 6 years. Prior to that, she was director at a large DDA in employment overseeing, and creating competitive jobs for individuals with different abilities. She also taught disability awareness to large companies all over southern Idaho.

Kalley Malone has been a special education teacher for 8 years, and has worked with individuals with different abilities for the past sixteen years. She is currently obtaining a Master’s in Special Education from the University of Idaho.

Session Description: The purpose of this workshop is to increase awareness of free resources available for social and emotional learning, as well as family and community engagement. We will demonstrate free interactive materials that can be used in the classroom or at home. We will offer tips and suggestions for educators providing social and emotional learning for children, and to connect with families outside the classroom.

Conference Strand: Special Education (IDEA Part B), Supporting Effective Instruction: Title II-A, Family and Community Engagement (FACE), Social and Emotional LearningSuggested Audience: Building Leadership, District Leadership, Paraprofessionals, Program Specific Staff, Teachers

Presenter Information: Kari Wardle is currently working for Idaho Public Television as the Community Teacher Ambassador. Prior to that, she taught fifth grade for eight years. She has a passion for helping teachers implement technology in the classroom, and was influential in helping colleagues throughout her school and district forge their way into 21st century learning.

Cindy Lunte heads the education department at Idaho Public Television. Prior to her work at IdahoPTV Cindy had a varied career. She is a scientist with a Master’s degree in freshwater science, but she has also been a full time grant writer, overseen wildlife preserves and visitors centers throughout Idaho, led story times and craft sessions at a local library and been a wilderness ranger in Oregon.

Session Description: Participants will have the opportunity to explore the Introduction to Co-Teaching
Course developed by the State EL Department and available online through IDLA. Developers will give a guided tour of the course, engage the participants in many of the learning activities, and field questions. A panel representing more seasoned co-teachers will answer questions about developing and building a co-teaching program.

Conference Strand: English Learners, Special Education (IDEA Part B), Supporting Effective Instruction: Title II-A, Title I-ASuggested Audience: Building Leadership, District Leadership, Program Specific Staff, Teachers

Presenter Information: Kim Allen, M. Ed. is originally from Salt Lake City, Utah and has lived in seven states and Mexico. She holds a bachelor's degree in secondary education from University of Utah (with an English major/Spanish minor) and a Master of Education degree from Boise State University. She is a former teacher of language arts and English as a Second Language (ESL), and she is currently serving her seventh year as an instructional coach at Canyon Ridge High School in the Twin Falls School District. Kim is also an active member of the Idaho Core Coaching Network.

Session Description: In this presentation, I will present a variety of online language learning resources. Participants will be exposed to language learning technologies that facilitate language use, assist in autonomous language learning, and provide additional exposure to authentic language in context. For each technology, examples of how it might be used for language learning will be demonstrated. Bring a laptop for an interactive workshop!

Presenter Information: Shannon Dunstan works for the State Department of Education as the Early Childhood and Interagency Coordinators. Prior to joining the State Department of Education, Shannon was a special education teacher in the West-Ada school district working with students’ with disabilities.

Session Description: This hands-on presentation will explore inclusionary practices: the intent of the law, appropriately assessing a student's least restrictive environment, and then designing comprehensive environments that work for students and staff members!

Presenter Information: Renee Miner is the Associate Director of Idaho Special Education Support and Technical Assistance at Boise State University. She develops and guides professional development training and supports for special education teachers and staff members throughout Idaho. She specializes in behavioral interventions and students with low incidence disabilities, including Autism Spectrum Disorder. Renee was a special education teacher, a district consulting teacher, and past statewide coach for the Autism Support Project at the University of Idaho, Center on Disabilities and Human Development. Renee is committed to helping teachers and providers increase program quality through accessing research-based interventions and practices.

Session Description: Idaho State University is home to a fully immersive virtual classroom environment – Extreme-MEdia. Extreme-MEdia, in conjunction with TeachLivE, is used to teach interview and self-advocacy skills through the use of the simulated classroom. This presentation will introduce the community to the avatars and discuss and demonstrate the potential of the lab and impact on supporting, inclusion, by supporting teachers with, micro-credentialing, pedagogical shaping, and skills practices in a safe environment. Additionally, the lab can be used to support individuals with disabilities with interview skills, self-advocacy, and self-efficacy within a non-threatening environment. Using the simulated lab allows for real-time feedback and coaching.

Presenter Information: Dr. Gallup has dedicated her career to supporting youth in transition through the integration of innovative technology. She is an expert in research related to successful inclusion, specifically those with Autism. She has national and international recognition for her work with gaming, simulations, and technology to support individuals with Autism. Dr. Gallup is an expert in the area of technology evaluation, integration, and system level changes specific to inclusion.

Dr. Bocanegra has dedicated his career to help meet the needs of underserved populations. This passion has led him to co-direct Project Extreme-MEdia with Dr. Gallup at ISU. Project Extreme-MEdia was created with the vision of harnessing technology in order to overcome obstacles that hampers people’s ability to adequately service vulnerable youth populations. As part of this lab, we recently completed a pilot project on the use of simulated environments to better train rural school psychologist on how to provide counseling services to rural youth. Furthermore, he is an expert on research methodology, behavioral modification techniques, creating system level changes, and working with diverse populations.

Session Description: English Language Clubs (ELCs) are a worldwide phenomenon, offering members opportunities to practice English in informal settings. Discover the impact that English Language Clubs (ELCs) have had in Africa and how these clubs can bridge the classroom to the home. What are the problems and possibilities for teaching culturally and linguistically diverse learners in Idaho? Come and discuss different examples of clubs and how they can support learning and inclusive learning engagement for ELs and Exceptional Learners with topics such as anti-bullying, conflict resolution, discrimination and service-learning. Professional experiences and research indicate that today more clubs are created and membership is growing—more than at any time previously. A synopsis of the issue is this: How can teachers and schools support the growth and potential benefits of ELs and Students with Exceptionality in Idaho?

Participant outcomes include an understanding of the variety of ELCs and information about how to create/support them. Participants will learn about professional experiences with ELCs from the Democratic Republic of Congo and Idaho —on how different ELC models support and/or challenge ELs, Students with Exceptionalities and how clubs bridge the classroom to the home environment.

Conference Strand: English Learners, McKinney Vento/Homeless, Migrant Education Program, Special Education (IDEA Part B), Family and Community Engagement (FACE), Neglected or Delinquent, Rural SchoolsSuggested Audience: Building Leadership, District Leadership, Teachers

Presenter Information: Dr. Bryce Smedley is an assistant professor at Lewis-Clark State College in the Division of Education. His academic interests are focused in applied linguistics, English as a New Language (ENL), Teaching English to Speakers of Other Languages (TESOL) and teaching English to immigrant families in public schools. For the past three years he has served as a Senior English Language Fellow with the U.S. State Department in Africa. During this time, Dr. Smedley has co-developed several manuals for English Club and American Readers Club for Congolese youth exploring issues of human rights, gender equality, democracy, diversity, tolerance, service learning and civic engagement. He organized the first National English Language Symposium in Kinshasa to revise the national secondary English language curriculum in collaboration with the Congo's Ministry of Education. Dr. Smedley has a B.A. in Cultural Anthropology from the University of Montana, M.A. in International Development from Chulalongkorn University in Bangkok, Thailand, and received a M.A. and a Ph.D. in Literacy, Culture and Language Education from Indiana University Bloomington. He is a former Peace Corps Volunteer serving in Watamu, Kenya. Additionally, he has taught in the field of language education in Afghanistan, Comoros, Democratic Republic of Congo, Mongolia and Thailand.

Session Description: This session is designed for educators who are looking for effective, engaging methods to teach foundational math skills. Using math story mats is the perfect way to teach all of the kindergarten Idaho Core Math Standards (and many first grade skills as well) in a way that makes math meaningful and interactive. Math story mats incorporate language skills and therefore support English Language learners. The mats are easy to create and can be used with parents as well. The presenter will align the activities to current research and present data from Idaho schools using math story mats.

Presenter Information: Cristianne Lane, M.Ed, is the Director of Professional Development at Lee Pesky Learning Center, a non-profit dedicated to improving the lives of people with learning disabilities through prevention, evaluation, treatment and research. With over 28 years of experience in the field of education, Cristianne provides instructional guidance, support, and training to school districts, organizations, and educators across the state. She is also the Director of the Idaho Early Literacy Project. Cristianne has a Master’s degree in Literacy Education and a Bachelor of Science degree in Elementary Education with a minor in Mathematics.

Session Description: This workshop will focus on instructional strategies for supporting academic success for diverse students. Participants will be exposed to a series of language protocols they can use to model academic language in the classroom as well as methods to scaffold and promote students’ language development. In addition, teachers will learn techniques for engaging students in classroom discussions using subject matter academic language.

Session Description: This workshop will discuss ways that paraprofessional staff can directly impact the success of EL and Migrant student populations in our schools. This workshop will examine; research, teacher experiences and recommendations from paraprofessional staff on effective ways to assist EL/Migrant students. We will also discuss how the school community can help define, guide, and mentor the work of our paraprofessional staff to impact the success of EL and Migrant students.

Presenter Information: Dr. Ernesto Ramírez Jr., is a builder of pedagogical spaces for the intellectual, emotional, social and cultural growth of all students. He leads the development, advising, teaching and supervision of the bilingually instructed (English/Spanish) early childhood degree program and has brought his leadership skills in bilingual curriculum development and instruction to students throughout his career. His priorities include the education of young children, the professional development of teachers, parent involvement, and academic support for children at all levels of their academic experience.

If you are interested in 2017 conference presentation materials, please view the Archives.

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The Idaho State Department of Education (SDE) is a government agency supporting schools and students. We are responsible for implementing policies, distributing funds, administering statewide assessments, licensing educators, and …